Jade The Vampire Slayer
by OneHorseShay
Summary: Jade West, one of many slayer potentials activated, struggles to live a normal life and pursue her dreams of being an actress and musician while dodging the Machiavellian politics of the supernatural world and helping to try to stop the release of a forty-five hundred year old Abomination from the Necronomicon.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: You're all probably thinking: 'Oh great, he's started another story without finishing the others'. Yeah, but I've been working on this one for a while and it is intended for Halloween to be done by Halloween. I hope you enjoy it.

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Jade: The Vampire Slayer

By OneHorseShay

Disclaimer: I don't own the intellectual properties of iCarly, Victorious, Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, Angel: The Series, Supernatural, Moonlight (The CBS Vampire Detective show) or the Evil Dead Franchise (particularly _Army of Darkness_) so don't sue, for God sakes, don't sue.

Rating: T Violence, Language, Adult Theme/Content

Pairings: Future Jade West/Freddie Benson (Jedi), ambiguous Tori Vega/Beck Oliver (Bori) and other various pairings.

Summary: Jade West, one of many slayer potentials activated, struggles to live a normal life and pursue her dreams of being an actress and musician while dodging the Machiavellian politics of the supernatural world and helping to try to stop the release of a forty-five hundred year old Abomination from the Necronomicon.

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Chapter 1

Abandoned Warehouse  
Los Angeles, CA  
Sunday, April 15, 2012

In the waning light of the afternoon, Victoria 'Tori' Vega and Beckett 'Beck' Oliver quietly made their way through an 'abandoned' warehouse, navigating around various stacks of crates. On paper the warehouse was abandoned by one of various companies hitting hard times, but it was far from abandoned with various amenities of being occupied by worn furniture, several mini-refrigerators and even a microwave, but with an impressive television and entertainment system that had to 'fall out of the back of a truck'.

The pair could individually smell the faint scent of the occupants, but they weren't the usual squatters… they smelled the scent of death and unholy permeating the room.

The back of Tori's neck tensed up as she felt a presence approach them from the other side of the open space. The pair slightly separated and watched for what turned out to be a pair of twenty something young men rounding a constructed wall of crates and barrels. There was nothing too remarkable about them and one wouldn't give them a second thought if they passed them in the street.

A somewhat built man in his mid-twenties growled out, "You two lost?"

Tori smiled. "Ah no, we're exactly where we need to be."

The leaner of the pair smiled in an almost giddy manner. "Yes you certainly are. I'm going to enjoy her for a _very_ long time—hell, I think I'll turn and keep her." The pair roared as their incisors became ragged, canine teeth extended, their brows deformed into ridges causing their eyebrows to disappear and their eyes turned yellow.

Tori smiled while she pulled out a short wooden stake from an inside pocket and finding a comfortable grip in the handle.

Beck's irises turned into a sharp blue color and his canines extended then let out a roar to respond to the pair's challenge.

The pair of vampires was somewhat shocked in the male teenager's appearance and reaction. The surprise was clearly cut off when Beck leapt and crossed the dozen feet to tackle the larger vamp while the other one charged Tori. The brunette raised her left arm to protect her head while she tried to get in a quick jab towards his heart, however his reflexes were faster and he swatted her arm away and actually the stake completely out of her hand. However, she quickly grabbed him by the collar and tossed him away to her right off his feet and slammed against the wall about half a dozen feet away.

She caught movement in her peripheral vision to her left and turned to meet the threat: a third vampire had appeared out of nowhere to tackle her to the ground. They rolled several times and ended up with him on top. She got her arms up to protect her head as he tried to start pummeling her face. He suddenly jerked up into a sitting position then the vampire's eyes shot open then looked down to see the tips of what looked like a pair of scissors sticking out of his chest. He didn't get a chance to further process the sight as he dissolved into a fine brown dust, covering the long haired brunette.

Tori frowned up at her 'rescuer': Jade smugly smiling at her as she lowered the scissors.

The vampire that Tori had tossed against the wall got back on his feet and was ready to charge the girls. Jade tossed Tori a spare stake from her jacket as the longer haired teenager jumped to her feet and the girls prepared to double team him. However, he quickly stopped as in a flash a muscular teenager was on his right and swung a machete horizontally, slicing through his neck. His head rolled off his neck and the head and body dissolved into dust before either hit the ground. The decapitator turned to reveal he was Freddie Benson.

Jade smiled her thanks just before the three turned to see that Beck had gotten behind his opponent in a headlock then made a quick jerking motion with his arms, snapping the demonic vampire's neck. Beck dropped the crippled vampire then took the advantage of pulling out a stake and stabbing him in the back. A high pitch scream later and the vampire crumbled to fine dust.

The blue highlighted girl began in an angry tone towards Tori, "What do you think you're doing?"

Tori pointed behind her and interrupted, "Complain later; we still have company."

Jade and Freddie followed her pointer finger to another five vampires ready for a fight and wearing their game faces.

The quartet turned to face them with Freddie raising his machete up and eyed the vampire at the right end to him, Beck snarled and focused on the vampire on the other end and the girls decided to take the three in the middle with the boys anchoring their flanks.

However before the two groups could charge one another, a voice called out from behind the group of vampires, "Ah, excuse me."

The center standing vampire turned and curiously looked at another teenager in a grey cloth hooded, black leather jacket and blue jeans. The vampire roared and gave the teenager a deadly stare as the briefest of warnings before he planned to tear out his throat.

Dusty calmly raised his left hand and placed his palm on the vampire's forehead and instantly, a high pitch whine sounded from the spot and a white/yellowish light blazed through the creature's eyes and out of his mouth through a terrifying scream and lighting up the area. The light ceased another moment later to reveal the eyes had been disintegrated before the vampire crumbled to dust.

The other vamps took fearful steps back in not comprehending what they had just witnessed. In their hesitation, Dusty stepped forward in less than a blink of an eye and caught two others by the throat and picked them up completely off their feet then slammed them into the ground. Their eyes flashed in the same white/yellowish light as their fellow vampire and dusted just as quickly after their eyes were reduce to less than ashes.

He looked up in a cold and predatory stare at the other two vampires.

They turned to ran away from him in instinctual fear, but apparently forgot the quartet they had been facing. Beck and Tori tackled one to the ground and she shoved the steak into his heart then the pair dropped to the ground as the body fell apart.

Jade grabbed her opponent by the collar and shoved the scissors into his heart while Freddie grabbed his left forearm to prevent the vampire from defending himself. His face looked to her in abject horror before it dissolved.

The smiting teenager casually walked to the quartet with a disapproving expression.

Tori laughed while standing up and looking at the surprised fifth member of the group, "So that's why they really call you 'dusty'."

The lean teenager frowned at the slayer as he brushed off his hands on his jean covered outer thighs. "Funny. So you're taking on nests by yourselves now?"

Beck retorted in mild offense as his eyes returned to his normal color and his canines retracted to their normal length, "We were doing just fine."

Jade sarcastically countered, "You were doing so fine that you were about to be ambushed by the two we just dusted then the other _five_ after them."

Tori looked to Jade with an impatient stare. "We could have handled them just fine. We were taking them on two at a time."

Freddie interrupted with a concerned laced voice, "This isn't funny Tori. You walk into a nest without any backup? You were going to beat eight on two odds?"

Beck through out his hands and retorted in a mildly offended tone, "I was her back up."

The more muscular teenager frowned at the leaner teenager and didn't look convinced at all from that optimistic assessment.

Tori palmed her forehead and looked to the Seattleite. "How did you know we were here?"

Jade crossed her arms under her chest and gave him a look as if he had seriously asked such a question.

Beck shook his head. "Cat…"

Freddie spoke up, "Of course Cat told us where you were. She was afraid of you two going out alone."

The darker haired girl demanded, "Why didn't you ask the rest of us to go with you?"

Tori responded with a somewhat embarrassed tone, "I didn't think you were still patrolling or willing to go out to destroy a nest and I thought you would have tried to talk me out of it."

Jade snorted out in disgust, "We live in L.A., patrolling is a waste of time in a city this big, but I guess your boss is too stupid to realize that and you didn't ask if I wanted to go." She motioned to herself, Freddie and Dusty. "_We_ would have gone with you."

Tori crossed her arms under her chest and blew out a breath. "She's _the_ Slayer and has been doing this for about fifteen years. I'm going to trust her experience… something you should be doing—she's a little concerned about some of your choices."

Jade placed a hand on her upper chest and sarcastically retorted, "Oh, she's still hung up that I work for a vampire. I'm the bad one? I'm another Faith in the making? That's rich coming from her: Buffy the Vampire _Fucker_."

Tori crossed her arms under her chest. "You're a _Vampire Slayer_; you don't work for _a vampire_."

Jade motioned a hand towards Beck and looked to Tori as if she couldn't believe she made such a remark.

"That's different and you know it!"

The pale girl shrugged a shoulder and casually asked, "How?"

"I have to explain that to you? He's your ex."

Beck rolled his eyes then shouted with a clearly annoyed tone, "I'm standing right here—and I'm not demonic."

Jade verbally jumped, "_That's my point_: neither is Mason and he gets just as offended about the purposeful confusion of the two." She looked back to Tori and continued, "I'm not going to feel ashamed for working for Mason. It's working for a vampire and having a record deal to become a hit recording artist verses being Buffy's little _bitch_? It's not a hard choice for me."

She took another step to her fellow slayer and stared her right in the eyes. "Get it through your head Tori: you work for Buffy then you're her bitch. In her mind, she is _never_ wrong and if you disagree, she will make you agree with her or destroy you out of spite. Ask Faith."

She shook her head in mild discuss as she brought up another point, "And I enjoy the protection of being signed to his record company, something we don't get in her little band of slayers."

Tori raised a disbelieving eyebrow. "Protection?"

"Yes, the _protection_. Buffy thinks she has this grand army now and thinks she can take on the whole supernatural world. She _can't_. Everyone is starting to organize against her. The demon clans that hate each other are setting aside their differences readying for a fight. The demonic vampires are starting to organize and focus on seriously taking her on." Jade finished by spitting out in anger, "She's taken away our greatest weapon against them."

Tori retorted in disbelief, "And what's that?"

"Them being afraid of us. We were supposed to be their bogeyman, but they're not afraid of us anymore, but angry and hate us, so they're ready to take us head on. What's going to happen is that once they're ready, they are going to wipe her out and her little Scooby Gang and any other slayer that is stupid enough to stand with her. I don't plan to be one of them."

Jade threw her hands up in disgust, "Chizz Tori, the Catholic and the Protestant hunters want to put her and the rest of us down… I hear the more reasonable ones are giving us the consideration of exorcising the piece of the demon out of us then sending us on our way in peace instead of killing us on sight."

Tori frowned and glanced to Dusty in an almost accusing manner and he stared back with an impassive expression and replied in a conversational voice, "You have a little bit of a _demon_ in you that gives you your powers and she's organizing you into an army only answerable to her and her handpicked lieutenants; you don't think that's going to worry a few people? Especially since she's told every other hunter organization on the planet—some that have been around since _the Crusades_—that she is the law and get in line behind her. I have no interest in bowing to her and there are plenty of us that share that belief. It's my understanding that the Pope Adrian the Seventh was not too happy being told such a thing. I thought you were Catholic and took his word over hers."

The brunette shook her head then looked to her darker haired friend, "So you sell your soul to a vampire for that 'protection'? He's going to protect you from the fighting?"

Jade crossed her arms back under her chest and sharply retorted, "I didn't sell anything. I'm a signed musician—a real job, not obligating my life to monster hunting because of what Buffy and her witch did to me—to _us_. I have other responsibilities now—more important responsibilities than to be her disposable foot soldier in a war she can't win."

Tori bowed her head and shook it and sadly remarked, "We're not going to get the normal life. We're the chosen ones—"

"We're only chosen because a bunch of warlocks that were too cowardly to fight their own battles enslaved a girl to fight for them after forcing the spiritual power of a demon down her throat. We weren't chosen by some divine power; we got it by the luck of the draw. I'm not sorry to say this Tori, but I'm no one's slave. If you want to think you have to give up your acting or musical ambitions because of this, that's on you and not my problem."

Tori looked to the floor in embarrassment at how close to home Jade had hit with her accusation about putting her entertainment ambitions on hold.

She pointed a finger in Tori's face and hissed, "And don't you ever pull a stunt like this and scare Cat again or _I'll_ kick your ass." She snorted out in disgust then turned and started for the door.

Freddie blew out a breath, but gave a lighthearted smile to the brunette, unsure of what else to say, "See you in class tomorrow?"

Tori returned the easy going smile with a wave of her hand as he turned to catch up with the pale Slayer. "See yeah."

Dusty looked between the slayer and vampire and shook his head in mild disgust of what he saw was clear stupidity on their parts then turned to catch up with Jade and Freddie. As if to prove his point another vampire jumped out from his left on his way towards the exit, but he quickly and quite offhanded manner, dusted it with a palm to the forehead, a flash of light, the eyes consuming away in their holes.

West Residence  
Los Angeles, CA  
Mid-evening

Jade's room had taken on a far more lighthearted approach over the last few weeks. The darker elements of her room were removed, including her odd collection of jarred specimens. She actually added another lamp to lighten up the mostly dark room to highlight the fact that one side of the room looked liked it belonged to a small child with various items of children books and toys… which it did with her step-brother Ian West moving in with her and her mother.

It was perhaps Jade's own motherly instinct or her healthy respect for the things that were out in the world after her calling in being a slayer (or in her mind the cursed by that redheaded witch to jank up her life), but she insisted that Ian stay in her room until he was older for his safety or until their father returned.

At the moment, Ian was in his bed snuggling to Jade's right side while she was finishing reading from one of his story books. The young child drifted off as Jade finished the last line of the book, "…and they lived happily ever after."

She quietly slipped from his side and put the book on the neighboring nightstand then pulled up the blanket to his chest and kissed his forehead. She beamed a smile to him. "Sweet dreams sweetheart."

He mumbled something unintelligible that brought a bigger smile to the teenager. She looked down at the Border collie lying just under the side of the bed. She leaned down and scratched behind his ear and he eagerly wagged his tail before settling back down to 'sleep' just under the left side of Ian's bed.

She walked over to her window and triple checked the lock on the ballistic glass windows. She looked above the window to see the Enochian demon-warding symbol still intact then started her routine of going about the house to double check the other windows, doors and other warding symbols.

She peaked her head into the garage to see several warding symbols painted on the inside of the garage door then locked the kitchen door behind her. She passed a goodnight farewell to her mother on she passed the living room and made her way back up the stairs.

She glanced back into her room for a moment to look at Ian peacefully sleeping with a stuffed animal Cat had given him. The Border Collie immediately lifted his head sensing the girl's presence. She raised her finger to her lips. "Shhh Ira, I'm just passing by."

The 'dog' settled back down while keeping a watchful eye while Jade continued on her way to the end of the hallway. She stopped at the partially opened bedroom door and looked inside: Freddie was sitting on his bed with his laptop in his lap, intently focusing his attention on the screen. The guest room was quite Spartan with the room's original decoration other than a few pictures on the dressers as Freddie hadn't bothered to decorate the room when he crashed in it several weeks ago.

She softly knocked on the door and playfully asked, "Any luck in finding your lost book?"

Freddie broke his attention from his PearBook and looked up to Jade with a slight frown, trying to ignore how lovely she still looked being dress down for bed in a tank top, black light sweatpants and makeup and jewelry free face. "No. Not even a whisper of any deadite activity since I got here or anywhere else. Someone has to have it and is smart enough on how to handle it without raising an army or getting infected themselves."

She walked into the room without a real invitation and plotted down beside him to his left. She rested her forearm on his shoulder to rest her chin and looked at the screen with him. He had several different windows opened to various news sites, especially the less respectable ones. She suggested, "What if it's just abandoned somewhere? What if you got the original deadite that was released when the poor soul read from the book the last time?"

Freddie turned his head to meet her eyes, their lips about an inch apart. "No, we would have found the book with him. The demon wouldn't have left the book in the wind, but then why aren't we being overran by deadites? What's with all the hiding?"

"Maybe they're fighting it out with the demonic vamps for the city? They have to share the territory since they can't come out in the daylight either. They might just be too busy?"

"Too busy competing for the same resource? People?"

She shrugged. "You can't infect a person as a deadite demon if they're already infected with a vampire demon. We know that there are plenty of demons that compete against each other and plenty that look down on vampires. Maybe they're fighting each other and can't bring about their undead army?"

His shoulders slumped on thinking on her words, not happy at all in that prospect either.

"Or maybe the dumb smuck decided to not read from the book until he realized what he was reading? Maybe the deadites scared him or her enough to stop?"

"Whoever has the book now was just lucky to keep one step ahead of them while carrying the book?"

"I don't know, but you were the one following the path all the way down here. Maybe you were catching up to them before they caught up with him? You're the one that is supposed to be the expert, but I'm sure you'll figure it out. You're the 'Promised One' after all."

He snorted out a laugh, "So says the 'Chosen One'."

"Yes I do." She stole a quick kiss from his cheek and quickly got up from her seat. "I'm going to hit the bed early, so goodnight. Don't work too hard and stress yourself out. It'll turn out alright. Get some sleep."

"I will… ah…" His voice suddenly thickened with nervousness. "Do you need any help tucking in Ian?"

She bashfully smiled to him and almost embarrassingly answered, "I already put him to bed, but thanks for the offer."

He nodded his head and the pair shared an awkward smile before she turned to exit the room.

Once she disappeared by rounding the corner of the doorframe to her room, he took a deep breath and pursed his lips, surprised from the contact on his cheek. He tried to turn back and focus on his research, but the lingering feeling of the kiss was quite the distracting point while trying to track down the Necronomicon Ex Mortis.

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Jade looked over to Ian one more time when she slipped back into her room and still saw he was still peacefully sleeping then walked over to her own bed to turn in early. She crawled under the sheets and slipped her hand under her pillow with a reassuring grip on the handle of the stake before settling her head on the pillow for a good night sleep.

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Author's note: _In medias res_ as it is called. I hope the first chapter of my Halloween story wet one's appetite to continue reading until the finale on Halloween.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: I'm glad people have enjoyed the first chapter and I hope you enjoy this one. Thanks for reading.

Challenge King: Thanks, I hope I don't disappoint.

Fanfic-Reader-88: Just a little Halloween Treat.

Jeremy Shane: Here's more.

Boris Yeltsin: I like the irony of the fact that I made Jade a slayer when she's so into vampires.

darck ben: I hope my PM satisfied your concerns.

Twilight Warrior 627: I borrowed from the Ancient Greeks to jump right into the action and fill in when appropriate the backstory. Tori is the 'good girl', so one would think she would be the one that would fall in line. Beck being a vampire has certain parallels of course to several characters, perhaps one that Freddie has parodied. Certain other people showing up and various powers would be spoilers to answer.

Jonathan 81: I like surprises. Freddie isn't Ash, just another 'Promised One' like Mia (Evil Dead 2013) and of course Ash as THE 'Promised One'. He'll have his own style in fighting the deadite menace.

illusorygentleman: Hopefully it won't be too tortuous to wait until the finale on Halloween.

Rating: T Violence, Language

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Chapter 2

Mason Thornesmith's Office  
Neutronium Records  
Los Angeles, CA  
Early Evening  
Sunday, April 15, 2012

The mid-thirties year old 'man' in appearance shouted in outrage on the other side of Mason's desk, "I thought you were keeping your slayer on a leash?!" He was so overwhelmed with anger that his brow deformed and his front teeth deformed.

Mason calmly turned away from the specially UV treated window and looked to the guest and his second. "And I thought we agreed that there would be no more hunting in _my_ city. You're given an adequate blood supple so you needn't hunt."

He slammed his fist on the hardwood table and shouted, "We feed when we want to feed on who we want to feed! You do not dictate to us you pompous blood sucking ass!"

Mason slightly frowned, but otherwise kept his cool from the abomination in his eyes. The two different vampire 'species' hated each other for the most part and this level of toleration of merely speaking to one another without going at one another was an aberration in the 'relationship' between the two groups.

The record owner turned and walked around his desk to face the self-proclaimed vampire master. The demonic vampire standing in front of him was hardly a master, just the strongest among the pact to be able to climb to the top and carve himself out a piece of Los Angeles after the chaos ensued just after the turn of the century when Wolfram & Hart was driven out of the city. He was barely past half a century after his turning or more accurately, dying and being replaced by a demon using his body as a 'meat suit'.

The grey haired vampire cocked his head to the side and asked in a carefree tone, "So you're backing out of our agreement?"

The yellow eyed creature contemplated the sudden turn in the pair's professional relationship and realized that their agreement was not going to work. He hissed out, "Yes."

The corners of Mason's mouth turned down, but didn't look upset from the turn of events. He placed a hand on the demonic creature's shoulder and calmly answered, "Very well… I guess if you feel so strongly about it…"

Mason didn't finish his statement as his right hand shot up with his nails extending into razor sharp claws and sank them into the dark haired vampire's throat. He pulled back and ripped most of his throat and neck out, sending his head rolling off backwards and dusting before the expected blood and gore could splatter everywhere.

The music executive retracted his nails and brushed his hands off one another then looked dispassionately to the other vampire. "Now you're in charge. Are we going to have a… disagreement about the terms your predecessor originally agreed to adhere to?"

He demonic creature shook his head.

Mason put on a bright smile and stated as he walked back around to have a seat behind his desk, "Excellent, now on to more pressing business… where are we on locating the book?"

The demonic vampire needlessly swallowed and answered, "We've searched nearly every bookstore in Los Angeles and we can't find it. We're starting to look at private collectors that might have it, but we can't break in to look to see if they have it."

"Ah yes, your 'no invitation' limitation… what about your demonic contacts on the streets? Such a powerful demonic artifact should be all the talk with the possibility of their brethren potentially returning and tipping the balance of power to them."

The sandy blonde from and retorted with a voice filled with bitterness, "They avoid talking to us. They look down on us as 'half-breeds' and vermin—as if we were just cockroaches."

Mason finally showed a bit of irritation and growled, "Well if you didn't bicker among yourselves and act like feral children all the time then they wouldn't look down on you that way." He motioned towards the vampire's predecessor's dust on the floor and stated, "He lacked vision and patience and was clouded by his animalistic instincts of just hunting and blood. Once Man stopped having to hunt, he created civilization. You should think about that if you want to be on the top of the food chain and make the other demons respect and fear you. You'll have to have both and play the long game. Time—time is your greatest weapon against them."

Eli nodded his head, taking his words to the equivalent of his heart.

The older vampire continued, "Well keep searching. I want to find that book before that 'Promised One' or my slayer find it. Break a few demons heads open if you have to, but find that book."

He nodded. "Yes sir."

Mason raised an impatient finger. "Remember no hunting. If the slayers find you, you are on your own… and if you hurt _my_ slayer, _I_ will kill you."

The sandy blonde nodded his head then quickly left the office.

The side door to the left side of Mason's desk opened and his assistant Chelsea walked inside. She noted with heavy concern, "Doesn't it make you feel dirty having to deal with that demonic vermin?"

He rubbed two of his fingers against a temple and groaned out, "Excruciating so, but a necessary. I don't need my fingerprints on trying to find the book and after five centuries, you learn that you sometimes have to get in the mud to get what you want… and have other people do your dirty work for you."

She nodded along then brought up her worry, "What if Jade or Tori find out we have the book if we get it—what if she finds it first?"

"Then we tell them the truth and if they get the book… we'll just have to find a way to get it away from them. Sometimes you can't plan for the unexpected and have to take advantage of the situation on the fly." He looked down to the mess of dust on his floor and disgustingly waved a hand down at it. "And gets someone to clean this mess up."

Sikowitz's Classroom  
Hollywood Arts High School  
Los Angeles, CA  
Monday, April 16, 2012

The Advance Acting II class was empty save for Sikowitz, Tori and Beck as the others were at lunch before class was to begin. The balding teacher sat on the steps of the stage and looked to his young charge with mild concern. "Tori, Jade has made it quite clear that she doesn't want me to be her Watcher or have anything to do with Buffy and the new council. If she wants to hitch her wagon to Mason, there's not really anything we can do about it."

Tori shook her head and spoke with a clear plea in her voice, "She's going to get hurt—or worst if she decides to stick with Mason. I'm sorry, but I just don't think it's going to be limited to her just being a musical star for him. I don't want to imagine all the ways he could use her for being a slayer. I've heard the stories about what happened to Faith and the mayor of Sunnydale in the late nineties."

Sikowitz took a deep breath and was about to answer her concerns when the back door to the classroom opened and Jade, Freddie and Cat entered the classroom. The darker haired slayer stopped in her tracks at seeing the three already in the room suddenly became quiet and her instincts screamed something was going on and not just for the fact that Sikowitz was actually early for his class.

Jade looked back and forth between her teacher and her fellow slayer with a cold and suspicious expression. She asked with a conversational tone but with the hint of chill lacing it, "Are we interrupting something?"

Tori took a breath and honestly answered, "Yes. We were talking about you."

"Me? If you have something to say about me then say it to my face Tori, not behind my back."

"I've already said it to your face, but you've blown me off so I'm taking my concerns to someone else."

The pale slayer turned her attention to Sikowitz and gave him a deep frown.

The acting teacher calmly answered the non-verbal challenge, "Jade, Tori's just concerned about you working for Mason now that we know what his is—"

"The same thing that Beck is."

The handsome inspiring actor rolled his eyes at once again being used to try to justify her choice.

Sikowitz continued in a calm breath, "But we don't know anything about his other than his public persona. We don't know what he could be planning for you."

She countered with a deeply angered voice, "I know what he's planning for me: to perform at this year's PMAs in front of millions upon millions of people and hopefully become a huge musical hit and I don't need a lecture from you. You're not my Watcher and I don't need your input in trying to sabotage my goal of being in the entertainment industry. If anyone needs a lecture it's you. You're the one letting Tori rush headlong into vampire nests without backup—and when the sun is going down, not during the middle of the day. How could you let them go off by themselves?"

The Watcher did not like accusation against his abilities, but Tori jumped back in before he could defend himself, "Hey, at least we're doing something. You're the one giving up your responsibilities—"

Jade interrupted with a snap, "Ones that I never asked for or accepted. I'm using my powers to take care of my own and that's it—that's all that you or anyone else should expect from me after they were forced on me. I'm not going to be looking for trouble. If you want to try to live out some grand destiny nonsense then you go right ahead, but don't drag me into it or try to make me feel guilty for not wanting to follow you."

Tori countered and motioned towards Freddie. "Then why are you helping Freddie? Why are you willing to help him find his book?"

"He's here and I'm not going to turn him away and I think stopping the unleashing of a very pissed off Sumerian god that has been twisted into something demonic since he's been stuck in a level of Hell for several thousand years is just a little more important than taking out a vampire nest."

"You wouldn't be saying that if they lived on your street."

Jade held up a finger and counted off, "One, I'm thinking of the big picture that is sitting right on my doorstep and I can't ignore it and two, it's not my fault people stick their heads in the sand and decide to be sheep led to the slaughter! Use the damn National Guard and sweep the city clean of them."

Tori frowned at her fellow slayer while Jade took several deep breaths with her nostrils and glared in return.

Sikowitz stood up and waved his hands in the air. "Enough, enough, you're just chasing each other in circles." He crossed his arms over his chest and blew out a tired breath then turned his attention to the visitor from Seattle and calmly asked, "Speaking of the book, Freddie, have you had any luck on any leads in finding it?"

Freddie slightly shook his head and blew out a mildly disgusted breath. "The trail's been cold since I got here. There hasn't been one peep since I sent that last deadite back to Hell two weeks ago. It's like the book dropped off the face of the Earth—which it just might have done with opening up a time portal."

Beck suggested with a look over his shoulder from where he was seated, "Short of it pulling the time traveling trick, have you thought maybe they've moved on to another city? San Diego or maybe down to Mexico? Or Vegas or Phoenix if they started heading east? Maybe you should try to pick up the trail?"

Jade took a deep breath and glanced between her house guest and her ex-boyfriend. She quickly retorted, "There isn't any hint that they've left Los Angeles, just that they've went to ground. They might be waiting for him to move on then strike when we're one down. He is the 'Promised One' and they'd want him out of the way for whatever they are planning."

The vampire squinted his eyes and pointed out with a mild hint of irritation in his voice, "Well how long is he going to stay at your house waiting for them to slip up? Is he going to finish out the entire semester until graduation?"

Jade turned her irritation towards her ex boyfriend and stated in a curt tone, "Freddie is welcome to stay however long it takes to find the book and finally destroy the damn thing."

Sikowitz spoke up before Beck could respond with any equally heated response, "That's not going to be easy. The thing is a tomb of unspeakable evils that has survived for millennia with only God knows how many protection spells on it to prevent such a thing from happening."

Freddie nodded his head and pointed out with a sarcastic remark, "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"Sorry, but I think you're going to need help to finally destroy it…"

The teenager frowned at seeing the teacher's line of thought. "I'm not sure if I would want them to get their hands on it either. I don't know these people and they could easily make things worst by throwing more magic at the problem. What if some of them want to snag a few spells for personal use?"

The acting teacher tried to reassure him, "Freddie, these are highly trained and experienced warlocks and witches that deal with this stuff on a regular basis. They should be able to figure out a way to destroy it and they would know that keeping any of those spells would be a very bad idea."

Jade spat out in disgust, "Yes, 'experienced witches'… one of them damning us by shoving part of a demon in us and painting a target on our backs for the rest of our lives."

Sikowitz ran a hand over his bald head and to the back of his neck, still disappointed in how Jade felt about the situation even a year after she was call being a slayer. Talking to her about it had been like talking to a brick wall and she was just as bitter as ever about it trying to disrupt her trying to have a normal life. It was her desperation for one that concerned him about willing to sign on to Mason for a music contract after her upcoming PMAs performance despite the obvious dangers that she couldn't or wouldn't see.

He was grateful that other students to the class started arriving early before the end of first lunch so he wouldn't get into another argument with her covering the same ground yet again and not accomplishing anything. As soon as the bell for second lunch rang, Sikowitz started back on his series about the importance of character backstory with continuing to show clips on the PearTV from his own guest appearances in various television shows.

The period quickly passed and was actually quite fascinating to a number of students about having a strong backstory for characters even if it could be a slow process in revealing such things to the audience. The bell rang signaling the end of the class rang and Sikowitz quickly dismissed the class.

As everyone got up to leave and head for their final class of the day, Freddie walked with Jade out the back exit and warmly smiled to the blue streaked hair girl. He casually pointed out, "Before class started, it almost sounded like you'd miss me if I left to go chase a lead."

She slowed her pace and partially frowned in mild embarrassment then shrugged a shoulder in recovering her expression. "Ian has… he's grown attached to you and he'd miss you if you suddenly left. After his mom just took off and my dad started looking for her… he just needs some stability in his life and if you suddenly left, I know it would upset him. He looks up to you."

He nodded his head, but having an odd feeling that Jade wasn't being entirely truthful. He let it go and stated, "I understand. I like the little guy too. He's lucky to have a moth—big sister like you looking after him."

"Don't get all mushy on me Benson."

He leaned over and whispered, "And you're not when you read him bedtime stories and tuck him in at night?"

She confidently retorted, "I'm making sure he's building his vocabulary and he can get a good night sleep and know that no monster is going to get him. I'm not being mushy."

"Whatever you say Jade, but…" He dropped his voice. "I think it's sweet and very profound what you're doing. You may want the normal life—normal life of an actress—but looking after him is a sacrifice you don't have to be making."

She took a deep breath then glanced away in trying to digest the compliment. She lifted and flicked her head to get some hair out of her face and quickly changed the subject, "I'll meet you after class by your locker? You still want to go with me to see Mason?"

He laughed and started softly mocking at the end of his statement, "Yeah, someone has to look out for you with seeing Mason."

She cocked her head to the side and asked in an impatient voice, "Not you too?"

He boyishly smiled in return. "What can I say? Ian would get upset if anything would happen to you."

She closed her eyes and slightly shook her head before picking up her pace to head for her next class.

Neutronium Records  
Los Angeles, CA

A blonde haired assistant to the record owner escorted the pair to Mason's office and opened the door. She held the door opened as Jade walked inside carrying Ian on her right arm and her left arm protectively around him while Freddie walked in behind her. The pair had picked him up from the neighboring elementary school just down the road.

Mason got up from behind his desk and walked around it to politely greet the pair. "There's my girl. Freddie, it's nice to see you."

The slayer guardedly answer, "Mason."

The visiting teenager politely smiled and answered in an equally guarded manner, "Hello Mason."

The record owner directed a friendly smile towards the child in Jade's arms. "I see you brought a little guest with you."

She gently hugged him a little tighter to her and answered, "Yes, this is Ian. He's my stepbrother. I just feel safer with him around me right now with all the things going on. The city's still trying find its stability and all and there could be some crazies out there that might like to do something stupid if they find out I'm a slayer."

"I understand. It's that stability that I'm trying to obtain as quickly as possible. My kind have been far too quiet and allowed the unsavory elements to run amok for far too long on the West Coast. You don't have this problem on the East Coast and definitely not in the South—except for maybe Florida."

He continued in a conversational tone, "Speaking of trying to find that stability, I heard one of the nests was wiped out. It's not a long list of suspects if it was another gang of vampires."

Jade held up a hand. "I'm not interested in actively hunt. I found out that Tori decided to go after one without proper backup and we joined her to prevent herself from getting killed. We're still arguing over the matter."

He blew out a breath and cheerfully commented, "Good. I'm glad that you're having far more sense than apparently she's got."

Jade smirked. "Your concern for me is overwhelming."

Mason leaned against the edge of the front of his desk and pointed out, "We have a business arrangement. You make money, I make money. We both win. Any deeper emotional attachments are not needed between us… especially due to our unique natures that naturally put us at adversarial positions. I have no wish to fool myself into thinking those are not factors."

"I see your point, but we haven't made any money yet."

He eagerly rubbed his hands together and happily remarked, "Well we will when you broadcast next Sunday night in front of two hundred million people."

"Well I'd like to finalize the song that I'm going to sing and get started rehearsing. I hope that's why I'm here."

"Of course, of course." He motioned a hand towards the door the trio just entered. "There are a number of songwriters and producers I'd like you to meet."

He started leading the way and Jade slipped Ian into Freddie's arms before the pair followed the record owner out.

Penthouse Suite  
JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. LIVE  
900 W Olympic Blvd  
Los Angeles, CA

The book everyone was looking for—the Necronomicon, the book of the dead and several other things—peacefully sat on the coffee table. Well, as peacefully as a book bound in human flesh and written in blood that could summon all forms of damnation from Hell and the space between the spaces could rest on a table.

A teenager obscured by a towel draped over his head from just leaving the shower smiled and relaxed watching television in the nearly five star hotel with Gibby's ex-girlfriend Tasha sprawled on the couch to his right in some scantly clad negligee with her head in his lap. He smirked on how well one could live with a few well placed bound demon possessions—the general manager of the hotel, a loaded trust fund baby for easy cash and an owner of a major modeling agency to make the girl resting on his lap happy—and how one could take vengeance on all those that had wronged him.

He saw the advertisement of the upcoming Platinum Music Awards the following Sunday that would be seen by two hundred million people across the planet.

* * *

Author's Note: I hope you liked this foundation chapter. Okay, Jade obviously doesn't like being pressed into being a slayer and doesn't like Sikowitz and the others' advice. I wonder if that'll have a future impact in the story. Later.


	3. Chapter 3

Hey everyone! Happy Wednesday! Just a little more than a week from Halloween. I hope everyone is doing alright and I appreciate the feedback.

Fanfic-Reader-88: I would say Jade can rely on the others, it's just that they disagree on some matters. Who is the dude with her with the book? Obvious spoiler.

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, I hope you like this chapter.

Challenge King: Jade and Freddie have fallen into a routine—odd, but a routine. Mason in this story is a pragmatic man—vampire which will become apparent as the story progresses.

Boris Yeltsin: You'll just have to keep reading to find out.

darck ben: If I'm remember who Caleb was correctly, at the time, Joss was desperate to give any actor from Firefly a job after that show was canceled. There are Freddie/Xander similarities that could be interesting to explore.

Twilight Warrior 627: People of Mason's condition actually can be well behaved since he is a different vampire species. Who has the book is a spoiler, but for Tasha, have you looked at the young lady lately? It is self evident why a young man would want to keep her around. Watchers come in all shapes and sizes now that the old school ones are dead. I see Tori as embracing the mission and overlooking the Slayer organization problems as they are out of touch most of the time with most of her exposure being Sikowitz.

Okay, on with the story.

Rating: T Language/Violence

* * *

Chapter 3

West Residence  
Los Angeles, CA  
Monday, April 16, 2012

Jade couldn't keep the smile off of her face since leaving Neutronium Records. She had worked up the perfect song to sum up and represent her chance of making it as a musical star which of course she would hope she could use as a jumping off point into acting roles. The song was still a little rough, but it would be polished with plenty of time to spare before the show with the help of experienced writers and producers at the record label's disposal.

The rest of the late afternoon/early evening was for the most part had the same upbeat way about it. Ian happily sat comfortably next to 'Jadey's mommy' watching television with Ira laying his head on the child's lap while lazily swinging his tail. The child wasn't exactly sure what to call Ruby West, but he was enjoying the quasi-grandmotherly attention from her (a little to her mild and amused chagrin of starting to act like a grandmother complimenting Jade's emerging motherly role to her ex-husband's stepchild) and companionship from Ira.

At the moment, Jade felt like things were nearly perfect for her right now, however, the evening was about to be possibly spoiled with Freddie about to go out with Dusty to track down a lead on _the book_.

Dusty waited by the door to the garage as Freddie pulled on his jacket and reassured signer/actress, "Dusty and I will be fine. We'll be back in a few hours."

Jade frowned while she crossed her arms under her chest. She asked with the barely of hints of concern, "You sure you don't want me to come with you?"

He was caught off guard from her volunteering as she had made it clear to everyone that she wanted to avoid her slayer duties. He gave her a grateful smile and laughed off, "I appreciate the support. I really do, but we'll be fine. We're just going to do a little investigating, not get into any kind of fight… we hope. If I thought we were going to get into serious trouble, everyone would be going with us."

"That's the part I'm concerned about: you don't know if it could turn into a real fight. I don't want anything to happen to you…" She looked over her shoulder to see Ian with her mother in the living room and quickly added, "—it would upset Ian."

"If it looks like we're going to get into serious trouble, Dusty will just wing us out then we'll all come back for a real fight. Okay?"

"Fine, but if it turns into a long night, check in. Ian likes to know that you're home before he goes to bed."

He reassuringly smiled to her. "I will."

Freddie headed out the door and Dusty was right behind, but Jade gently caught him by the elbow and whispered, "You're going to keep him safe, right?"

Dusty teased, "Growing a little attached to him?"

She frowned in return and curtly replied, "I don't want to upset Ian if anything happened to him and Carly would kill me."

He smirk as he playfully answered, "Yes, you wouldn't want to upset your so—stepbrother if anything happened to his dadd—your houseguest or have any slayer-on-slayer violence between you and Carly—even if that would be a really good fight to watch, especially since Shelby's been training her."

She glared at him from his poor attempts at making comments about her home life and her 'relationship' with Freddie at the moment. She wanted to follow up with cutting remark, but decided to take a more somber approach, "Please just keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't get into too much trouble."

"I'll keep him safe for you two."

She cracked a soft smile as he turned to catch up with the Seattleite then she locked the door behind them before heading into the living room.

The dog got off the couch to let Jade sit down the jumped back up to lay across her lap so he could still rest his head on Ian's lap. Jade still didn't care for dogs, especially large dogs that liked to jump on her for being friendly, but then again Ira wasn't exactly a dog and _far_ more complaint to commands.

Ian looked up at the pale girl and quietly asked, "Where's Freddie going?"

She smiled down to the child and reassured him, "He's just going out for a little bit. He'll be back before your bed time."

He turned slightly into his seat snuggled up to her.

She wrapped her arms around him and looked up to her mother unsure about the situation. Her mother softly smiled and shook her head at a slightly humorous manner at her daughter's expense.

Crowley's Pub  
Westwood, Los Angeles, CA  
Monday, April 16, 2012

_"My soul is wrapped in harsh repose; midnight descends in raven-colored clothes. But soft...behold! A sunlight beam cutting a swath of glimmering gleam. My heart expands, 'tis grown a bulge in it inspired by your beauty—effulgent."_

The platinum blonde vampire finished his bit of poetry to the moderately filled establishment. The room was mostly filled with humans with the occasional vampire and a humanoid demon enjoying the entertainment and politely clapped as he got off his stool just as the pair of teenagers entered the pub.

The clapping quickly stopped as a number of patrons turned to look at the duo entering the pub, both human and several humanoid demons.

Freddie whispered over, "I don't think they like me."

"It's not just you; I'm freaking them out. You know that creepy feeling that crawls up your skin from feeling something truly unholy?"

"Yeah."

"They're feeling that exact feeling with us—the Holy Light of God, you being a 'Promised One' and all and me… well I'm obvious… we are the things that give monsters nightmares."

The thought reassured the 'Promised One' and the pair walked further into the establishment, giving a polite nod to the platinum blonde that passed them to head for the bar, to take a table to watch the next one taking a seat onto the stool to continue the poetry jam.

As soon as they took their seats to watch the show, a teenage vampire approaching six feet tall walked to the table and blocked their view. He spat out in near disgust, "You two lost?"

Dusty smiled up a the teenager he recognized in an instant and answered, "Poor Randy… so some vampire killed you after you got kicked out of school… my quarrel died with him demon, so leave it alone. We're just here to enjoy the entertainment."

Randy deeply frowned at the nephil as an apparent manager quickly approached the table from Freddie's side, seeing exactly what could possibly happen in the next few moments and stated with a nervous tone, "Look fellows, I don't want any trouble."

Freddie teasingly smiled, "We're not here to cause any trouble. We're not hunting; we're looking for a book. We're hoping someone might have heard something about it."

Randy hissed, "A book? You've come to the wrong place, try the library or Amazon."

The Seattleite ignored the vampire's interruption and continued, "It's a special book that I'm hoping someone around here would know where I could find it."

"Special book? Sounds like it could be worth some money."

Dusty chuckled, "Or your soul… but since you don't have one, it's not something you have to worry about."

The manager asked, thinking the faster he could help, the faster they could get out of there before trouble started, "What book?"

"The Necronomicon."

The manager shook his head and stated in a tone to try to convince himself of his own words, "The book's a myth. It's not real."

Freddie sharply retorted in a dark tone, "It's quite real. The demons it summons are quite real—the deadites are certainly real."

Randy frowned and growled in disgust as he took a seat on the other side of the table, "Those things aren't just evil, they're insane."

Freddie asked in a semi-sarcastic tone, "So you don't want those things running around?"

The demonic creature glanced away in disgust, but Freddie pushed on, "You want those things gone and so do I, so why don't you help me?"

He spat, "You think I'm willing to help you? You want to kill us too." He glanced to Dusty and reiterated, "He certainly does."

The Seattleite was quick to reply, "Yes I do. You're a predator to humans and this is about survival. I may kill you, but they will kill you. They don't see you as one of them and even if you don't, they want to wipe out all life on Earth—your food supply. This is a chance at your own self-preservation."

The vampire looked at the pub manager then towards his fellow vampires that had walked up behind him. He reluctantly replied, "I don't know where the book is, but I've seen a deadite. She's looking human, but I can smell the demon in her… the madness."

"Where? When?"

"Boomerang Theater, last night. I think the host works there because she was leaving it late. She's a cute young blonde. We saw her when we…" He deviously smiled, exposing his demonic teeth. "…I like the variety of tourists provide."

Dusty looked reluctant at the information and glanced to Freddie. "I didn't think they maintained the life of whoever they possessed? I thought it was all madness and kill, kill, kill?"

"No, they usually don't," Freddie answered a doubtful voice. He looked to the vampire in suspicion.

"I'm only telling you what I saw. Believe me or don't, I don't care. I hope she kills you."

Freddie frowned as he had serious doubts in the change in behavior for a deadite with the possibility that this vampire could be setting them up for a trap, but he couldn't really ignore his first real lead in weeks, especially when the creature had possessed someone working at the place Jade was going to perform in less than two weeks.

Another vampire that had been quietly overhearing the conversation calmly got up from his seat to head out of the establishment.

Boomerang Theater  
1111 S. Figueroa Street  
Los Angeles, CA  
Monday, April 16, 2012

The beat up Charger pulled up into the outskirts of the parking lot to the theater to try to look as inconspicuous as possible around it and the neighboring hotel within walking distance. There were still a number of vehicles in the parking lot even as it approached ten.

Freddie blew out a breath as he watched the exit for their prey. "The waiting always stinks," he muttered in mild disgust.

Dusty shrugged a shoulder as he undid his seatbelt and got comfortable in the seat. "That's assuming she's still here and one of those cars is one of hers. She could have already left for the night."

"They're busy getting ready for the show next weekend, so let's hope she hasn't."

The leaner teenager idly commented, "Well if this pans out, you might be back in Seattle by the end of the week."

Freddie kept his focus on the exit while answering, "Yeah… I could, but I would stay to see her performance. I couldn't miss that."

"I figured that. I would guess you've gotten pretty attached to her over the last few weeks. The short films, living with her, being kind of father to her little brother… anything else going on between you two?"

He turned his head and slightly frowned at his companion.

The nephil snorted out a soft laugh, "What? It's the obvious question to ask."

Freddie turned his head to look back at the parking lot. "There is nothing going on between me and Jade."

Dusty chuckled, "_Why not?_"

Freddie quickly retorted with a slightly pitched voice, "What do you mean 'why not'?"

The passenger turned his head away and laughed before answering in a mildly mocking tone, "A very attractive girl that is nice to you and cares about you and on her way to stardom, why _wouldn't_ you be interested?"

Freddie softly shook his head and looked out at the passenger window. He blew out a breath and rubbed his index finger under his bottom lip.

Dusty shook his head and rolled his eyes. "How long are you going to carry that torch for Carly?"

"I'm not carrying a torch for Carly. I put that down a while ago when I realized that she was never going to return my feelings. I can only torture myself so long by denying reality."

"Then back to my first question: 'Why not?'"

Freddie remained silent as he turned his attention to the exit.

Dusty rolled his eyes and muttered, "Fine then… so she's available for me to date?"

The tech-producer smirked as he asked, "Which one? Carly or Jade?"

Dusty knowingly grinned and let out a soft laugh before looking back out the front windshield.

Freddie chuckled at the light teasing. "Wouldn't it be a little hard in pursuing either when there could be something between you and Heather?"

The half-angel cocked an eyebrow and questioned, "Heather?"

"Yeah, Heather Fox, the supermodel that seemed kind of interested in you when we were filming Jade's film last week… and you seemed particularly charming with her."

The other teenager suddenly became somber as he answered, "I think you were imagining something…"

"If you say—"

Dusty sat up in his seat and focused on a lovely blonde in her early twenties exiting the building and interrupted him, "There she is. She's a deadite—I can see the real face from here and _damn_ are they ugly."

Freddie quickly cranked the half restored muscle car and muttered, "We'll have to follow 'her' home. We can't ambush her in the parking lot, cameras and security."

"Wish we could see the license plate then we wouldn't have to follow her."

Just as the words left his mouth, a van rolled to a quick stop next to the sports car and shielded the pair's view of what was happening. The next moment the van sped off and the young lady was gone, the door of the sports car freely swinging open.

"CHIZZ!" Freddie shouted as he put the car into gear and floored the accelerator to follow the speeding van.

Abandoned Warehouse

The early twenty something year old would look beautiful if her skin wasn't a sickly grayish color, her eyes an equally sickening yellow and her mouth was bleeding blood. The demonic creature allowed some of its physical essence to bleed through and turn the poor girl's body into a canvas of its wickedness, finding no reason to hide its true nature from the rest of its brethren.

The vampires had tied her to a steel chair then back away. They may have been the same kind of creature, but they were slightly frightened by the level of madness in their fellow creature.

Eli frowned at the creature as he was just as disgusted as the other vampires. "Where's the book?"

The blonde smiled, a small amount of blood dripping from its lips, and snapped sarcastically, "Book? Book? What book? You should let me go. We're all on the same side."

Another mook vampire shouted, "Same side? You want to destroy the human species. If they're gone, we'll have nothing to eat."

She lazily shrugged then wickedly replied, "When we bring Hell on Earth—when Dagon returns, you won't need blood to survive. Hell, you won't even need those dead flesh bags to inhabit."

"I don't want to live under your hell god."

She started chuckling which quickly turned into wild, manic laughter that sent fear even into the other demons. She finally calmed down and looked directly into Eli's eyes and whispered through blood covered teeth, "You think you get a choice in the matter."

Dusty chuckled out cutting through the tension, "I see we are fashionably late for the party."

"You don't mind if we joined you," Freddie followed up with a soft laugh.

The vampires tensed at seeing the pair lazily approached them from the far side of the warehouse.

Dusty recognized one of them and questioned, "Eli?"

Freddie narrowed his eyes on the sandy blonde vampire and questioned his friend, "You know him?"

"Not personally. I just know he used to go to Hollywood Arts. Poor bastard, his body is being used as a meat suit too like Randy."

Another vampire hissed through jagged teeth, "You need to leave."

Freddie answered coldly, "We need her."

"Well you can't have her. We need her more."

"We need her to find the book—the Necronomicon. I am not letting you have the book so you can bring the rest of your kind into the world."

"We don't want to let any more of these things into the world. We want to destroy the blasted thing before anymore can be let loose."

Freddie retorted in a guarded tone, "I think you'll have to pardon us if we don't readily accept your word on that—_demon_. Just walk away—we'll let you—and let us handle this."

Another vampire in the group spoke up, not interested in the mortals butting their noses into their business, "There are only two of you and there are eight of us. You should leave."

Freddie pulled out his machete from the sheath tied to his right leg and slipping his left hand into his jacket pocket. "You're right… we're willing to let you go."

"Let _us_ go? Kid… you two are our dinner."

He charged at the Southern teenager and swing wildly, but Dusty ducked and threw out his fist and jabbed him straight into the sternum. The vampire was lifted off his feet and was sent flying backwards more than a dozen feet and past the other vampires. He slammed into the wall and slid down, immediately starting to cough up blood.

They turned back in fear to look at the teenager except for the one that was already charging at Freddie, apparently not really seeing the danger of him holding a machete. He quickly learned his folly with Freddie being fast enough to swing and lop off the vampire's right arm, leaving a surprisingly cauterized stub at the elbow. The vampire didn't get much time to contemplate the lost of half of his arm as Freddie turned the blade and swung up and horizontally to decapitate the creature. The blade sliced through the neck and the head tumbled and dusted before it hit the floor.

Another vampire quickly followed his nest-mate, but Freddie swung the blade back and down, imbedding a few inches into the creature, but the ribcage stopping the blade from going deep enough to reach the heart.

The vampire roared in pain from the cut into him and the burning sensation as the blessed blade sizzled and started burning him from the inside. The shouting quickly ended when Freddie finally pulled his hand out of his pocket, revealing a set of brace knuckles with a cross cut into each knuckle, and punching him in the face. The strike shattered its teeth and broke its nose and sent it backwards, pulling the blade from its flesh.

Freddie was on him in an instant and brought the blade horizontal to its neck and pushed down, severing its head and dusting it.

A fourth vampire found his courage to take on Dusty and threw a jab at him, but the Southern teenager was quicker and grabbed him by the wrist and turned to swing behind the vampire. Dusty swung down with his left forearm, snapping the limp in the opposite way the elbow joint was meant to go. He brought his left hand back and grabbed the demonic creature by its shoulder and tossed it backwards and colliding with two others.

The vampire next to Eli charged at Dusty, hoping to catch him off guard, but he was the one surprised when a one foot long silver blade appeared out of nowhere dropping down from Dusty's right inner forearm then swung upward and stabbed the vampire directly in the middle of his chest. He missed the heart, but it didn't matter as the demonic vampire's eyes dully flashed with a sizzling sound then less then a second later he crumbled to dust.

Eli looked on in horror as the three of his underlings were dusted and two more too injured to fight while the two Hollywood Arts students looked like they were just warming up for a fight. He made the most logical choice, he turned and ran with the others desperately scrambling behind him to flee from the warehouse.

Dusty spun his short sword in his hand threw it at one of the retreating vampires. It found its mark and imbedded itself between the creature's shoulder blades. It let out a loud shriek before collapsing in a pile of dust.

The vampire's companions didn't bother stopping as they ran in terror from the pair.

As Dusty retrieved his blade, Freddie approached the bound demon and lazily stated, "We need to talk."

* * *

Several minutes later, she hissed and yelled a string of obscenities as it struggled against its bonds in the steel chair. Other than the ropes tying her down her arms from where the vampire had tied her, she was handcuffed to the chair with a special set of handcuffs, ones that were decorated with various religious symbols. One final layer of security for her was that a red painted Enochian devil's trap, one even a Knight of Hell couldn't break, was painted around the deadite.

She finally stopped and yelled at the pair standing a few feet away, "I will swallow your soul!"

Freddie rolled his eyes as he paced around her. "Yeah, yeah you'll swallow my soul. I've lost count how many times I've been told that. Where is the book?"

She manically laughed, "Book? What book?"

He walked behind the creature and tilted the water bottle over just enough for some water started falling from the mouthpiece and pour on top of her head.

She wailed in pain as her skin sizzled and the water steamed off from the contact of the holy water against her skin. She tried to spit at Freddie, but he was too far away when he walked away from her.

Freddie smirked to the creature as he walked around her to face her again. "You know what I love about you deadites over all other demons that like possessing people? Anything I do to you hurts you and not the poor person you're possessing. You'll break long before I get tired and you're not smoking out, so why don't you save us the trouble and just tell me what I want to know."

She breathed quickly in and out with nostrils flaring and gave a deadly look at the muscular teenager, quite irritated that the mere mortal could actually cause him/her pain as in really hurt him/her and just not damage the 'meat suit'. She shouted out with spittle and blood flying from her mouth, "You will never get the Necronomicon! Never!"

Freddie smiled, "See, it wasn't that hard. Now we're getting somewhere. Where is the book?"

"The book is up your ass!"

Dusty started pacing about to behind the creature then grabbed the crown of her head and pulled it back to look up at him towering over her. He smiled, but it wasn't a friendly smile. "I think this poor girl wouldn't appreciate using such language with her mouth. How about we use the old tired and true method of washing it out?"

He held up a sports squeeze bottle and stream of water down her throat then held her mouth shut.

The deadite jerked and wailed against her binds as her mouth and throat was scolded with the holy water as it traveled down her throat and into her stomach.

He released her mouth and started pacing around the outside of the painted dual circles while Freddie took a comfortable seat in front of the creature, outside the circle, and calmly asked, "Where is the book?"

The creature took several deep breaths, not that it truly needed any of them then hissed, "You really think I'm going to tell you?"

"Yes, because we are going to keep hurting you—you not this poor girl—until you tell us what we want to know. I just hope she's enjoying the show as payback for possessing her in the meantime."

"What's the point? I'm never letting her go!" The creature started manically laughing again.

Dusty whispered in such a way to pierce the laughter, "Are you so sure about that?"

The creature stopped and glared at the nephil while Freddie just smiled and calmly started speaking, "Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursion…"

The deadite's eyes opened wide and started to convulsing as if she was about to hurl up the contents of her stomach, which turned out to be a little bit of fine black smoke. The handcuffs prevented the demon from voluntarily leaving the host, but they didn't prevent the Rite of Exorcism to be effective against the supernatural creature.

The Seattleite stopped speaking and calmly continued, "Yes, I can get you out of her and not just by sunlight. You just don't get to scurry away. I'll send you right back to the pit and you won't be crawling out of it anytime soon."

She looked at him with such hatred that one could tell from her eyes alone that she wanted to rip him apart, piece by bloody piece.

Freddie didn't care as he stared back in a detached expression. "Now where's the book?"

Over the next hour, demonic screams roared throughout the warehouse.

* * *

Author's Note: I hope you got a little better insight into this AU and didn't mind me mixing a few fandom into one pot. Later, OneHorseShay.


	4. Chapter 4

Thank you all for continuing to support this story. The updates have been slower than expected due to something very positive happening in my life, but has considerably cut into my writing time for the time being and possibly the next few weeks. I'm hoping writing time will pick up in the future and I'll strike the right balance.

Also, if you haven't heard, sometime in the future of Sam & Cat, Freddie, Jade and Robbie will appear. I will be the first to admit that it will be interesting to see Freddie and Jade really interact (AU versions of themselves as S&C is AU to both shows), assuming the actually do and there isn't some harebrain reason they won't interact that Dan could pull like he did in iParty with Victorious.

Rating: K+

* * *

Chapter 4

West Residence  
Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Jade gnawed on her thumb nail as she paced back and forth in the kitchen. She glanced over to a clock in the kitchen and saw that it was past midnight. It was the fifth time that she looked at the clock since he called to say that he was on his way home—back to their house. She was annoyed that he was out this late, but she understood the necessity. However, it was harder to explain to Ian why Freddie wasn't there before he went to bed as he was really starting to bond with Freddie after their father had taken off in search of Ian's mother.

She was pulled out of her thoughts with hearing the automatic garage door open and the soft rumble of the garage door opening. She opened the door to the garage and watched as he pulled the beat up Charger into the parking spot. The garage door rolled down to a close as he exited the vehicle. As he walked the steps up to the kitchen passed her, Freddie haplessly smiled. "I called."

As the door swung back behind her, Jade crossed her arms under her chest and gave him a disapproving smile.

He returned with a curious expression as he cautiously replied, "What? I called, what more did you want me to do?"

She shook her head. "Never mind. I know, I know, I was just…"

He softly teased, "Were you a little worried?"

The corner of her lips turned down and answered with a nearly flat tone while she closed and locked the kitchen door, "I was not worried. I was mildly concerned."

He surprised a smirk at seeing her poor lie while she walked over to the kitchen island and took one of the stools. He quickly followed and took a seat on the opposite side of her as she asked, "So what did you find out?"

The handsome teenager confidently smiled as he spilled, "The book is still in L.A. I confirmed that if someone had it, they were smart and being very cautious."

Having been filled in before Freddie and Dusty started interrogated the deadite, she asked, "Why would they care about the music awards? Are demons into that thing?"

Freddie looked back with a lost expression. He awkwardly chuckled out, "Maybe whoever has the book has a thing for music?" He blew out his breath and continued with a somewhat perplexed tone, "I don't know. The deadite just taking up and maintaining the person's life isn't something I've ever heard of one of them doing."

"You believed it?"

"For the moment, yes. The way we worked it over… we went all 'Zero Dark Thirty' on it as Dusty called it. They can inflict the pain, but they can't take it. We got all the information we were going to get out of it."

"You sure? It could just be lying to you."

"Maybe, but contrary to what people think, torture unfortunately does work…"

Jade made a sour face and looked down at the island and hesitantly brought up, "Even if it was a demon, you don't have a problem doing that? That's pretty dark—even for me—in really torturing something."

"Dusty's father has unfortunate experience in that area, but we looked at it in a more practical aspect. We weren't inflicting pain just to inflict pain, but to find the book. Hurting it to find the book and prevent more of its kind or something worst out is a far better alternative in not doing it is allowing for the chance of one of them swallowing Ian's soul. It is a matter of perspective."

A shiver went through her as in her mind's eye saw a grotesque vision of Ian being possessed by one of those abominations. She had seen the last one Freddie had tracked down and it looked like something out of someone's worst nightmare. She took a breath and pushed the image out of her head so she could asked, "So, you sent the thing back after you were done?"

"No, Dusty smite—smote it. Smote is the past tense of smite, right?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

He softly chuckled, "Anyway, it's not coming back and it's not going to be able to warn anybody that we're the one that got to ask the questions."

She rubbed her forehead. "That's a relief. You're already on the top of their kill list." She looked up and continued, "What about the girl? Is she okay?"

"Yeah. We dropped her off at home. It was pretty traumatic for her, but she was grateful for us not just getting it out of her, but killing it… she's probably going to be in therapy for a long time…"

"You mean a strait-jacket if she tells a shrink the truth… then the rubber room."

"I don't know what else to do to help her. Maybe Dusty knows someone she could talk to that's been through that sort of thing. I don't know."

She nodded and a silence fell between them, neither sure how to slip into another conversation after talking about torturing a demon and the traumatic experience of being possessed by one. Jade glanced down at the kitchen island and hesitantly brought up, "Ian was disappointed that you weren't here before he went to bed."

"Sorry, I'll check on him."

He got up from the stool and headed upstairs without another word. She let her eyes follow him towards and up the stairs and she didn't realize a small smile formed on her face.

Freddie peaked inside the room to see the child peacefully asleep. Ira had climbed on the bed at some point during the night to snuggle close to the child and Ian had wrapped an arm around the back of the 'dog's' neck to use as a Teddy Bear. Ira lifted his head up when he sensed more light spilling into the bedroom.

Freddie patted the dog's head as he knelt down beside the bed. "Shhh Ira. I'm just checking on him before I head for bed."

The child stirred and opened his eyes while smacking his lips, "Jadey?" He took a few seconds to focus his eyes and recognize Freddie. He softly murmured, "I thought you'd be back before I went to bed?"

He apologetically whispered, "Sorry little guy, I just… I just had to take care of some grown up business. It took longer than I thought. I'll make sure I'm home tomorrow night to read you a story."

Ian nodded his head and yawned then snuggled his head back into the pillow. He brushed over the child's head with the palm of his hand and stood up. He turned to head back out, but was stopped when he saw that Jade was standing at the threshold of the bedroom. He paused for a moment to see her, really see her as he had been more focused on updating her with what had happened than paying attention to her physical appearance.

She may have still had her green highlights in her hair, but she was free of her makeup and facial jewelry. She wore a simple tank top and sweatpants. She looked… natural and beautiful—though she had always been to his eyes.

He smiled… and unexpectedly felt a wave of nervousness go through him as if he was meeting Carly for the first time. He didn't notice that she was bashfully looking away as he cleared his throat then awkwardly commented, "Well, it's late and you two need to get a good night's sleeps. I'll see you in the morning."

He slipped past her resting her upper right arm and shoulder against the doorframe and the parted door.

Her right hand caught his left as he passed the threshold, stopping him in an instant to meet her eyes. She gently squeezed his hand and whispered, "You have a goodnight too."

He nodded then regretfully pulled away and she watch him head for his room. She cracked a soft smile then slipped into her room and closed and locked the door.

She walked to the foot of Ian's bed then slipped up behind Ian and pulled him close with a kiss to the crown of his head, willing to keep the monsters at bay. The child relaxed in the warm embrace of his mother…

Shay Apartment  
Seattle, WA

The soft ringing from her PearPhone caused the Carly to stir from her sleep with a groan. She rolled over in bed to her nightstand to see her phone blinking a soft light. She pulled herself up and picked up her phone. She took a sharp breath from recognizing the number and tapped the accept button.

She quickly answered, "Freddie? Is everything okay?"

_"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm fine. I just wanted to update you."_

She groaned out as she looked at her dresser clock, "At nearly one in the morning? Couldn't it wait until the morning?"

_"This is one update I thought you'd want to hear: The book is still in L.A."_

Carly shot up straight in her bed. "What?"

_"The book is still here."_

Carly nearly shouted to wake the entire apartment, "You found it?!"

_"Not yet, but we captured a deadite a few hours and questioned it."_

Her mouth dropped opened and whispered out in disbelief, "You interrogated one of them? You could actually do that to one of them?" The idea of holding one for any particular amount of time other hacking it to pieces or finding a way of driving it out was a completely foreign concept to her.

"Yeah, it wasn't much use though other than figuring out that some smart has control of the book."

"Someone's using the book? Someone knows how to use it without becoming a deadite?"

_"Apparently."_

"But you don't know where or who has the book?"

_"No, it didn't know where the book was. Whoever has it knows how to use it and keeping the underlings in the dark to his or her plans."_

"Are you sure? They aren't exactly the most truthful things."

_"Yeah, we interrogated it pretty thoroughly."_

"Where did you find it? There's a plan?"

_"We found that it had taken over an employee at the Boomerang Theater, the theater that Jade's going to perform next weekend. It was just living the girl's life for some reason."_

"Living her life?"

_"Yeah."_

Her brow knotted and she commented with a soft whine, "They don't do that."

_"This one did under the orders of whoever is controlling the book. It's just not random violence and terror or releasing Dagon, there's something more to this."_

"This is bigger than we thought. Do you need me and Sam to come down there?"

_"No, not right now. I'm not sure what you could do in the meantime that we're not already doing…"_ He chuckled, _"Already busting a few demonic heads and I'm sure Sam is busy with the ones up there."_

"She certainly is. The local vampires have figured out that Ridgeway and everything around it for several blocks is off limits. Sam's on a kick on trying to clear out every nest in Seattle. She wants everything out there to be too afraid of coming to Seattle."

She heard him blow into the mouthpiece of his phone then he continued with a fearful voice, _"Are you two cleaning out nests? By yourselves?"_

"What's with the concern? We've handled nests fine before you left."

"_Sorry. On Sunday Tori and Beck went by themselves to clear a nest without telling the rest of us and we showed up just in time to prevent them from being ambushed. There's been some tension recently between Jade and Tori and Tori feels she's having to pick up all the responsibilities of being a slayer even if it means doing things without Jade or the rest of us."_

"Jade doesn't like being a slayer."

"_Do you?"_

Carly bowed her head and remained silent for a few seconds then reluctantly answered, "Not really."

"_I guess Buffy screwed over a lot of people."_

"It's not something I would have ever dreamed up in thinking I would ever have to deal with."

She heard his soft chuckle on the other end of the phone, _"I understand that…"_

"Yeah, but once the book is gone, you'll have your normal life back."

_"No I won't… it doesn't change the fact that you're a Slayer and Sam's a Cambion. I'm not just going to sit on the sideline while you 'battle the forces of darkness'."_

She quietly retorted, "I don't want to be a slayer for the rest of my life."

"_I know and that's why you've got to make your own path free of all this mess just like Jade."_

The pair separated by more than a thousand miles paused in silence.

Freddie broke the silence, _"Just stay the safe and don't be reckless—please remind Sam of that. Just because she's the scariest thing in Seattle, that's not a license for her to be reckless."_

The brunette Seattleite snorted a laugh, thankful for the distraction, "I won't… I'll keep Sam out of trouble."

"_Good to know. Well, I think I've interrupted your sleep enough and it's an early morning for me too, 'night Carly."_

"Goodnight Freddie. Be home soon."

His soft laugh brought a softer smile to her lips, _"I'll try."_

Mason Thornesmith Residence  
Los Angeles, CA

Mason took a sip of the red liquid from his wine glass then looked to Eli with mild annoyance standing on the other side of his desk in his study. "You didn't learn anything from her?"

"We had to leave her behind. They killed half my people in less than a minute with metal weapons—metal, not wood. Freddie was just as strong as any of us and the other guy could toss us around like we were rag dolls. Are they slayers? I thought only girls were slayers?"

The record producer sat the glass down on his desk then walked around the heavy oak piece of furniture. "No they are not slayers, but they are just as dangerous or more so." He softly growled then commented, "No point in getting yourself killed… so they have the girl?"

"Yeah and the probably know where the book is by now."

Mason turned to his desk and pressed a button on his phone, "Chelsea, I want someone staked out at Jade's and Tori's houses right now. I want to know if anyone leaves either place."

Eli curiously asked, "Why are you putting someone at their houses?"

The music company owner patiently answered, pleasantly surprised that the abomination in front of him was actually thinking instead of just reacting, "Because if he knows where the book is located, then he's going to gather his friends to make sure he can retrieve the book and get out alive. Having two trained slayers as backup would be the most sensible thing to do."

The teenage vampire nodded his head and asked, "What if they get the book?"

"Then I'll just have to find a subtle way of getting it."

Sikowitz's Classroom  
Hollywood Arts High School  
Tuesday, April 17, 2012

The Hollywood Art clique was gathered with the eccentric acting teacher in his classroom several minutes before the first class of the day. Freddie quickly explained what happened the previous night including revealing the regretful news about what happened it Eli.

Beck leaned back in one of the colorful chairs and slightly squinted his eyes. "So after you were done, you just killed it? We could have interrogated as long as we wanted."

Freddie snapped back, "Every minute we let it live or not exorcise it from her is another minute that it could torment her. We had to get the information quick—not just for her benefit, but with whatever the book will be used for. It didn't know where the book was or who had released it, just that whoever controlled the book knew the right spell to have it be under the command of who controlled the book."

Beck blew out an unnecessary breath and suggested, "Maybe Mason has the book? The thing was working at the theater."

Jade countered, "For reasons it didn't even know why it was told to perfectly mimic the woman's life for no one to be suspicious? Why would Mason plant a deadite in his own company?"

"Maybe he's run out of vampires to staff key positions? There are times where you'd want something more than just human. There could be more than one—maybe a dozen."

Jade pointed out what she thought was the biggest flaw in his argument, "And not let the thing know who the boss was? Counter-productive much?"

Tori quickly followed up, "It's not knowing that is the problem. This much doubt is dangerous. I don't think you should perform. Beck's right, we don't know how many more of them could be at the theater."

Jade gave her a cold stare, but patiently answered, "Tori, don't use this as an excuse to sabotage me. If you don't want to perform, that is your choice. Don't try to ruin it for me."

The brunette sat up in her chair and sharply retorted, "I don't want to sabotage you. I'm just concerned for you. I don't want something to happen to you. It can't be a coincidence that one of them was there and you're going to perform."

Beck countered, "Tori is not trying to sabotage you. She's just concern with your association with him…" He glanced to Freddie and softly finished, "…all your associations."

Freddie looked back at him with a slightly guarded expression. "Why are you looking at me?"

The vampire ran a hand over his mouth then hesitantly answered, "Maybe if you hadn't come to L.A., we wouldn't be worrying about this."

Jade was quick to the defense her house guest, "They didn't follow him, he followed them. We'd still be dealing with them whether Freddie was here or not."

Sikowitz blew out a breath and hesitantly suggested, "That's something we could debate endlessly, but the point is that I agree with Tori. I think you should reconsider performing. Maybe it's not safe to associate with Mister Thornesmith anymore."

The pale slayer gave the Watcher/her teacher a harsh glare and stated in a crisp voice, "Well it isn't your choice. I'm performing." She stood up and turned to leave while calling over her shoulder, "I'll be back for class… maybe."

Tori looked to Sikowitz with a worried and near desperate expression for help after Jade exited the classroom.

The acting teacher shook his head while Freddie pinched the bridge of his nose before following Jade out of the classroom.

Neutronium Records  
Los Angeles, CA

Jade decided to skip Sikowitz's class and decided to do something productive: inform Mason about what happened last night and the potential threat. They may have labeled her a traitor for approaching him with what she wanted to reveal when they carried so many doubts, but it was a calculated risk and one where she didn't have much patience for their hypocrisy.

Freddie had decided to tag along and the pair was quickly escorted into the office.

Mason sat behind his desk and suppressed his own enthusiasm with the obvious news they were to deliver and asked with a fatherly concerned voice, "Jade, Freddie I got your message. What's the urgency?"

The future songstress quickly answered, "We found something out last night—well Freddie did."

The record owner narrowed his gaze and looked to Freddie and asked, "Found what?"

"One of your employees at the Boomerang Theater was possessed by a deadite. We questioned it thoroughly, but it didn't know who released it or why it was told to possess one of them."

Mason rested his laced fingered hands in front of his face and knotted his brow in annoyance. "I would have appreciated a call sooner."

"It was late—"

He looked to her with mild annoyance and disbelief, "Late? I'm a vampire."

She was sharp to return, "Well I'm not and I needed my sleep and you're active during the day."

Mason simply frowned in return and continued, "Do you still have her?"

The Seattleite answered in a guarded tone, "No, we took care of the demon and sent her home. She's shaken up, but relatively fine. It didn't really torment her. It was far more concern in not raising anyone's suspicions."

"I didn't think that was their typical M.O."

Freddie raised a curious eyebrow.

Mason smirked, "I'm old Mister Benson. I have learned a few things in my old age. May I ask you what you found out?"

He glanced over to Jade to see if he should reveal what they had learned—which wasn't much. "From her? Nothing, other than the demon was commanded to maintain the woman's life perfectly until told otherwise."

"By whom?"

"It didn't even know, but it must have been someone that knows what they're doing with the book. Plenty of people have accidentally released demons—on those around them, on themselves, but this person understands the book well enough not to be a victim of it."

Mason looked a little disbelieving as he inquired, "Is that possible? I thought the book was more of a cruel joke by demons to just get themselves released by some poor, unsuspecting soul."

"It usually is, but at some point it had to be written by worshipers of the demons and they were left alone. Whoever has the book right now might be one of them."

"A dark cult? They are always a pain in the arse." He shook his head then continued, "I'll have to increase security and use some of my… personal employees to sniff them out." He looked to Jade and finished, "I'd like you to have some security."

The dark curly haired teenager questioned, "Body guards?"

He nodded. "As heartless as this sounds, it is the truth: you are an investment to this company and I don't want one if these 'deadites' to have a lucky shot at you since you're associated with Mister Benson here."

Jade gave him a cold stare, bordering on looking to him as if he could be her next target. "You think this is because I'm friends with Freddie?"

"Why else would they be sniffing around the theater? Do they just like to see a good performance without paying?"

The dark beauty quickly answered, "I don't know, we don't know, but we're going to find out, but in the meantime—"

"In the meantime I hope you will maintain your level of caution as you assured me earlier and take the security detail I'll arrange for you."

Jade looked at him unconvinced, but Freddie whispered, "I think the security is a good idea."

She snapped her head and frowned. "I don't need a shadow that I could constantly trip over."

Freddie leaned over to whisper, "What about for Ian? You personally take him to his class at preschool, you're over there during your lunch and you personally pick him up from the classroom—he sleeps in your room. I know him having a shadow would be a stress off of you."

Jade still looked unconvinced as turned her gaze towards the record producer. "But will they be any use? Deadites aren't your average the mill demonic creature. They're as tough or tougher than demonic vampires without the stake weakness. They're pretty hard to put down especially if they don't know what their doing or freak out."

Mason crossed his arms over his chest and smirked. "Automatic weapons with consecrated bullets? I have survived for a very long time and know the tools of the trade. Yes, the bodyguards would be quite effective against anything that could come after you or your brother and they won't have the moral concern of struggling whether killing a possessed person verses the safety of your brother."

She looked to Freddie for his opinion or second opinion.

He nodded his head and answered, "I think it's a good idea."

The dark haired girl looked back to her boss and answered, "If you want to give me security then my mother and brother are a packaged deal with me, especially my brother."

He put on a soft smug expression and answered, "That's perfectly acceptable and now that is taken care of, let's look at this on a practical manner in defending ourselves against whoever has control of the book. Jade and her family will get security, but want about the theater?" He looked to Freddie and asked, "Could you ward the theater?"

"A public place is quite difficult to ward by its very nature."

Mason frowned. "Fine, the extra security will have to be enough to literally sniff them out, but finding the book would be the best solution. If there is anything I could do to help…"

The 'Promised One' continued, "We keep hitting the street for any word of where the book could be located or who could have it, but right now the deadite was our first and only lead at the moment."

Mason turned to his phone and spoke, "Well let me get on those security arrangements and let you get back to tracking that book down… except for Jade who I hope will be in the studio to finalize her song so she can start rehearsing either later tonight or tomorrow night."

"I'll be back here this afternoon after school…" She glanced to Freddie with the sudden dread of whether that was the right decision rather than go out with him to help track the book down.

Freddie however, dissuade those conflicted feelings, "She'll be right here to practice after school… which I think we should be getting back to. Sikowitz may overlook missing his class, but our last classes of the day may not."

Mason suppressed a smile at seeing Jade's relieved expression from Freddie's words, grateful for the support of Jade keeping her priorities straight. "I'll see you this afternoon to check on you, but in the meantime, I hope you two have a nice afternoon."

Jade waved as she turned, "Thanks."

Freddie politely nodded as he followed the slayer out.

The pair entered the elevator and Jade hesitantly gazed at her companion while the doors closed. "You don't trust him?"

Freddie glanced up at the spot in the ceiling he expected a camera then trusted that it didn't have an audio recorder as he answered, "I don't know him Jade."

"So it's _not_ the vampire thing?"

"No. Having the book by anyone is dangerous that's why it needs to be destroyed, once and for all. Beck _might_ have a point, but I'm not going to make the assumption either way. If I did… I'd just go ahead and kill him… along with Beck for just being a vampire. Someone having it now that can actually command the demons that are summoned, that's a whole new level of trouble that we've never have had to face and that is what has me concerned, not _what_ that person is."

She softly breathed and nodded along with his words as they rode down silently.

* * *

Author's note: The tensions between them thicken and lines may have just started to be drawn…


	5. Chapter 5

Sorry for the lateness of the update, but personal life has gotten in the way and my writing has slowed down considerably. Hopefully I will be able to pick it up in the near future, but in the meantime, please be patient with all my story updates.

Jeremy Shane: I'm not personally bothered that Dan has made S&C AU, what I have a problem with is him trying to tell use that it is canon to iCarly and Victorious when it's not. When the partial reunion special happens, it won't bother me if he tries to write something that is completely contradictory to either show, because he doesn't have the power to retcon away anything from the previous shows with a third show.

Fanfic-Reader-88: Good news yes, bad news for writing time. Differences in opinion on how to handle the situation. Lines are being drawn.

illusorygentleman: Thanks.

Challenge King: Thanks.

Boris Yeltsin: Just something that has happened in my personal life, but the down side of it cuts into writing time.

What fun.

darck ben: Maybe the Zeppo might show up for a quick cameo, but I had not heard of a Charmed reboot, that would be interesting.

Twilight Warrior 627: Get out another knife to cut some more tension, because it is in here. Hope you like this chapter.

Rating: T Violence, Language

* * *

Chapter 5

Neutronium Records  
Tuesday, April 17, 2012

The time ticked towards four o'clock in the afternoon as the lovely blonde assistant led Dusty into the office. He looked over his shoulder as the young lady exited closed the door behind her to give him and Mason privacy. He turned to look at the record producer standing near the center of the room. Mason pressed a button on a small controller he held in his hand.

Dusty looked up at the circular overhead light above Mason's head and saw that it was a dark red light that shined through a covering with a black painted six-sided star that was encircled. It was more detailed than a standard devil trap with various other symbols between and inside the star pattern. He raised a curious eyebrow and softly smirked. "A Seal of Solomon? An honest to God true Seal of Solomon. That must have been hard to find a true one and not just some poor reproduction to copy it from… you could even trap an angel in it."

"It is truly extraordinary what you can get your hands on with age and money."

"I don't doubt it, but why stand in the trap?"

He slightly tilted his head to the side and replied, "I'd like to have a conversation without my most inner thoughts laid out for you. The seal doesn't just keep things in, but keeps unwanted things out."

Dusty chuckled, "Have an honest conversation by keeping secrets?"

"Well I can't do the same to you."

"Quite true and understandable… no such thing as freedom without privacy. So you wanted to talk to me?"

"I wanted to see if you were interested in a job. Graduation for you is just around the corner for you."

"A job? You want to turn me into some kind of musical star or something in the mail room?"

He cupped his hands in front of him and replied, "Well I have seen you sing—at your Full Moon Jam two weeks ago and I was pretty impressed. I could turn you into the next Beiber with your looks and talents, but I was thinking of something a little more immediate."

"And that would be?"

He glanced to the floor then answered, "You have a unique… inheritance, one that I think could benefit a great number of people—people you care about—with my help."

"Your help? Mind to elaborate that?"

"As you know, I'm trying to establish order in this city—the type of order that New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington and London to name a few that have been able to maintain for centuries when it comes to their supernatural populations—and with your help, I could speed that process along."

Dusty smirk and softly retorted, "Jade's not your hired muscle… but you want to hirer me as such?"

"I would like us to have a professional relationship. With your unique heritage and powers even among the denizens of the supernatural world, you do tip the scales—"

"I don't tip the scales, I obliterate them. It's like giving one side in a feudal war a nuclear bomb."

"Yes, quite true, but… I would like to be the one that has the bomb." He took an unnecessary breath then continued with a diplomatic tone, "This is a perilous time. The game board hasn't shifted this much since World War Two when the Allies wiped out entire demon clans, dark magical cults and some of the oldest vampires in Europe—in the world—at the time: the Watchers being wiped out and reformed with a slayer army to back them, the Christian Knightly Orders—Protestant and Catholic together—taking a more proactive instead of reactive approach to the supernatural world, The Circle of the Black Thorn gone with Wolfram and Heart having a tenuous grasp in this dimension at best even after ten years of trying to reform—"

"Well the slayers have been somewhat useful I suppose: that demonic vampire with a soul turning over the rolodex of clients then working their way down from 'A'. You're not really a business when all your clients are ending up violently dead."

"Yes they have so far, but that could change in time and along with the rest of the upheaval, maintaining order and peace in the power vacuum is not an easy task and I could use any edge I can get."

"You want me to be your hired gun to eliminate anyone that threatens your power?"

"The devil you know… but more than that. I'd like for you to be my way of letting the Orders that I'm not a threat. That I can be someone they can trustfully deal with."

Dusty teased, "Why do you think I'm in any position to do such a thing with them?"

"Because of what you are… what you believe and not just know. You may outright work for them for all I know."

The Southern teenager cocked an eyebrow. "Would I? They are the 'humans first' crowd."

"On the outside they may appear as such, but I know better. I've been around a long time and intimate familiar with them. Unlike others, I understand the Orders are not blind institutions trying to feel around trying to figure stuff out or just 'kill it with holy fire' and ask questions later as say the Church itself with its former Inquisitors. I know they employ devout members of my kind, Crows, devout werewolves, holy warriors that might as well be Jedi, a few thaumaturgists and hell, even a few slayers, but you… you are rather unique and I'm guessing one appearance from your angelic parent to them to reassure them what side you are on and they would welcome you in with open arms. Your voice would carry a lot of weight with them."

"I'm the nephew of Lucifer, a potential Antichrist. Do you really believe they would do such a thing?"

He smugly replied, "And risk defying word from on high? No."

Dusty tilted his head slightly to the side. "So… it's an endorsement from me to them so they don't put your head on a stake when they get around to you?"

"They haven't turned their eye on me and I would prefer it that way."

"Let's just say that—hypothetically speaking—that your assumptions are correct about the Orders and me, why would I give such an 'endorsement'? I don't know you. To me, you're just another Eastern Europe type vampire that could easily be as dangerous or even more so than a demonic vampire since you're not blinded by bloodlust and the need to torment."

"That is a very strong possibility, but I was thinking that my actions with Jade would be adequate proof at the present until something happens to change your mind."

"You mean something that proves that you really are a monster?"

"We're throwing the 'M' word around?"

"We've been talking about nothing else but the 'M' word since this conversation started. You want to be the king of them in this city and one acceptable to the Churches so they don't put a stake in your heart then decapitate you."

He flicked his eyebrows up. "Fair point."

The nephil gave a slight bow of his head then answered, "I'll think about it. It might behoove me to establish relationships with beings in similar circumstances as I face myself: a very, _very_ long life where I outlive those around me."

Mason beamed a smile. "The burden of immortality, it is a heavy one and only he strongest are able to endure it and still remain themselves for the most part."

"I wouldn't doubt it," Dusty said in bidding farewell as he turned for the office door.

West Residence  
Los Angeles, CA

Freddie was halfway through the kitchen when he heard the pitter-patter of small sock covered feet across the travertine tile floor. He turned to see Ian run to him and catch him by the leg.

The four year old looked up and eagerly asked, "Where are you going?"

Freddie separated himself from the child and knelt down to him to reach his eye level. "Ah… I need to go out to take care of some grown up business."

Ian wrapped her arms around his neck and held him close. "You did that last night. You didn't come back until after I went to bed."

Freddie's mouth slightly dropped open and looked upward to Jade who had trailed behind the child.

She smirked in return as an answer, somewhat reveling in Freddie's awkward predicament in having to explain why he had to go out a second time.

The brown eyed Seattleite wanted to make some remark about how easy it was for her to smile as he had been with her at the studio all afternoon and would be with him tonight. He suppressed making any remark and patted the child on the back and answered, "I won't be too long. I'll see you before you go to bed. I promise."

"Okay," he laughed then turned to run back into the living room.

Jade teasingly smiled as Freddie stood up. "You promised."

He boyishly grinned. "I think you set him up to that."

Jade paled over her upper chest and looked on him with feign outrage.

Crowley's Pub  
Westwood, Los Angeles, CA  
Tuesday, April 17, 2012

The Seattleite asked in a mixed tone of confusion and disbelief as he walked though the threshold into the busy establishment with Dusty, the bouncer not bothering to search them, "So he offered you a job?"

"Yep, basically hired muscle or probably more accurately, an assassin."

As they passed the bar and a few stray glances from the nonhuman patrons, Freddie reluctantly pointed out, "That's what Tori and Sikowitz—especially Sikowitz—is afraid is going to happen with Jade and him, that he'll just use her as a weapon."

"They do have a right to be concerned. A slayer _is_ a dangerous weapon—an army more so—and I've heard stories of Slayers going bad… anyway, it wouldn't be much different whether or not I worked for him. I would prefer to wipe them all out and have humanity at the top of the food chain."

Freddie reluctantly nodded in support just as the pair stopped in front of a table occupied by Randy and one of his vampire cohorts. The Seattleite directed a friendly smile to the demonic creature and pleasantly thanked him while taking a seat, "Hello Randy. Thanks for the intel, it paid off."

The muscular vampire threw Dusty a disgusted expression as he remained standing behind Freddie then chuckled to the tech-producer, "So you made it out alive? I'm impressed."

Dusty happily pointed out, "And took a few of your kind out while we were at it."

Randy threw a revolted look at Dusty and retorted with a darkened smile, "That may be the case, but none of them were any of my guys so… hunting'll be easier. Don't have to compete with as many fangs."

Freddie leaned back in his chair and pointed out, "Does it really matter? Your hunting ground is getting smaller and smaller each day with Mason gaining more and more control over the city and you can't afford the competition for people, but… that's your least concern."

The muscular vampire asked in mild disgust, "What are you doing here?"

The 'Promised One' sat up then leaned towards him to rest his forearms on the table and answered, "Seeing if we can find anything else about the deadites or book… it's still in L.A. and whoever has it can do some pretty nasty things with it…"

"You want more information?"

"Hey, she was a dead end—in more than one way." Freddie suggested in a harmless manner, "I'm just asking you to relay whatever you hear—for both our benefits."

Randy growled in annoyance seeing that Freddie was not afraid of him, so he eventually relented to the request, but unfortunately didn't have any more information to share at that time.

* * *

Dusty suggested as the pair exited the pub, "You want to scurry around the theater and try to pick up a trail? They may not be in it anymore, but some of them could be staking the place out since they changed their M.O. about being quiet and patient."

Freddie shook his head. "I can't."

The leaner teenager raised an eyebrow. "You can't? The night's still young."

Freddie blew out a regretful breath, "I got to get home before Ian goes to bed."

Dusty smirked at his remark of calling the West residence 'home'. "So he's expecting his daddy to be home?"

The tech-producer clenched his jaw tight and slightly shook his head.

The nephil threw up his hands. "Why do _I_ have to point out how domesticated you've become over these last few weeks then add her little stepbrother? It's as clear as day you three are this little family unit."

"You're just reading stuff into the situation like all those fans at the last webicon that thought I was dating either Carly or Sam?"

Dusty furled his brow and patiently pointed out, "It was no secret that you were in love with Carly for years and the following week, Sam did make a pass at you. They held some fair and reasonable positions. Not a good counterpoint to my position and obviously the little guy is seeing it that way or you wouldn't be rushing home to not disappoint him."

Freddie blew out a mildly annoyed breath and turned away to head for his car.

Dusty trailed behind and idly commented, "Maybe I can wrangle up Vega and Pretty Boy to track down something. She's eager to be all slayery, so why not put that to some real use? And besides, she could use some adult supervision."

The more muscular teenager threw a look over his shoulder and questioned, "You're an adult?"

"Hey, which one of us excluding Jade has had any sense when it comes to these supernatural matters? That Watcher is pretty useless if he's allowing her to go into nests with only Beck as support. I'm not sure if Pretty Boy is worst than Sikowitz for supporting her from doing such a thing when he should know better."

Freddie stopped just as he reached his car and turned to look to the leaner teenager with a hesitant expression.

"What?"

The Seattlite glanced away as he remarked, "I'm not thrilled with the idea that Tori going out and doing this either. It's my fight, not hers or any others."

Dusty pointedly remarked, "You're not excluding Jade."

Freddie met his fellow hunter's eyes and sharply retorted, "I don't want her involved either, but for this, she is… I wish she wasn't caught up in any of this mess—the same with Carly and Tori."

"Well maybe after this is all over, you should look up Buffy and her witch and air out your grievances about it to them?"

The famed tech-producer deeply frowned and contemplated on whether he should do such a thing, leaning towards yes.

Dusty continued as Freddie's train of thought went about his head, "Listen, we'll be fine. Go home and be with you makeshift family because what I learned about this life from my family is this: family is more important than the job, so go home to yours and enjoy the night while you can."

Freddie didn't look too pleased with the assessment of his situation at the Wests' residence, but decided not to argue but reply, "But isn't the job for the family?"

"Yeah, but if you let it consume you, you won't have one to fight for."

Freddie nodded his head then relievingly smiled, relenting to the argument for the time being. "Fine, I'll see you tomorrow. Don't get into too much trouble—or drag Tori into it either."

Dusty chuckled, "No promises."

The Seattle native chuckled and opened the driver's side door to slip into the driver's seat. A few moments later, the Charger pulled away out of the parking lot to disappear into the early L.A. night and after a sound of rustling air later, Dusty was gone from the spot he was standing.

West Residence

Freddie quietly made his way up the stairs as the time was just passing eight that night. He turned at the top of the stairs and started down the hallway that led past Jade's room, a room where the door was slightly parted open and he could hear Jade's soft voice, free of any airs of toughness or hostility. He peaked his head inside the small gap left by the partially opened door to see that Jade was on Ian's right side sitting up in bed with him reading one of his storybooks.

He smiled and just watched the stepsiblings as his mind couldn't help to drift in painting a picture that the tough girl he had gotten to really know over the last few weeks was reading to her child. This was one of the rare moments that he recalled seeing her drop her guard and be sweet and loving girl that he head suspected and he took the moment to appreciate it.

Ian finally noticed his presence and called out, "Freddie!"

Jade looked up from the storybook and smiled at the houseguest.

He smiled at the pair and paused for a moment before replying, "Hey, I hope I'm not interrupting anything. I heard you two reading and I'd take a moment to check on you."

The dark brunette softly explained, "You're not. We're just finishing up his reading before I tuck him into bed. Do you want to have a seat and listen?"

He noticed Ian's almost pleading expression and quickly relented to the nonverbal request. He folded his leg and took a seat on the other side of Ian to Jade, nestling the child between them as the child held the storybook in his lap. Freddie looked down at the colorful pages and asked, "What are you reading?"

"We're reading Pudgy Monkey. Aunt Kitty gave it to me."

Freddie forced an easy going smile and looked to Jade for an explanation, "Aunt Kitty?"

"Do I really have to tell you?"

He shook his head and looked back to the book just as Ian tried to start reading the simple words, apparently trying to impress Freddie along with Jade.

The pair of teenagers turned their heads to look at one another and shared a quiet smile, each seeing something in the other's eyes… seeing normalcy before they turned their respective attentions back to the child sitting between them.

Vega Residence  
Hollywood Hills  
Los Angeles, CA

Dusty tapped the doorbell and patiently waited for someone to arrive as he stood at the side entrance to the Vegas' residence. He didn't have to wait long as Tori eagerly opened the door to reveal herself to the handsome Southern teenager.

He smiled and warmly greeted her, "Hello Miss Vega."

"Ah hi," she nervously laughed.

He looked around her arm to see Beck on the couch and getting up, giving him a slightly irritated expression.

Dusty looked back to Tori and asked, "Did I interrupt something?"

She quickly shook her head and in a near panicked tone answered, "No, no you didn't, nothing at all."

The expression on Beck's face showed otherwise to Dusty's eyes along with Tori's voice to his ears. He allowed an internal laugh at the possibility of blocking the vampire's advancements towards the slayer, especially since she was so eager to deny that anything happened.

The brunette nervously rubbed up and down her purple jacket covered arm and asked, "So what's for the visit?"

"I wanted some backup to do a little investigating around the Boomerang Theater. You want Jade to quit the show because of Mason and those abominations probably wanting to infiltrate it, so the best way to make both of you happy is to try to track down who has the book and that is the best lead we have right now. So why don't you two saddle up and we can go do some investigating?"

Beck stood up from the couch and walked up beside Tori. He narrowed his eyes while watching the nephil and questioned, "Why aren't you out with Freddie? And why do you need us? You're practically a walking nuke."

He grinned. "He had to get… _home_ before Ian went to bed. The little guy has obviously grown attached to him… they seem to be forming a nice little family unit now aren't they? And even if I'm a walking nuke, it never hurts to have some backup."

The inspiring actor rolled his eyes and softly mocked, "You mean _playing_ house."

Tori gave a disapproving glance over to Beck and was about to softly admonish him when Dusty mockingly asked, "Ah, are you jealous Pretty Boy? Regretting that you dumped her?"

Beck raised a finger and quickly attempted to correct the record in his opinion. "Hey, she walked away from me."

Dusty motioned behind him to the Vega door as he answered, "And you let her walk right out of it without a fight. Oh wait, that would require you caring about her feelings."

A low primal growl emanated from deep in Beck's throat then he blinked, revealing that his eyes turned blue with his canine teeth started to slightly extend.

Dusty smirked and after a blink, his eyes shined blue with a soft, but high pitched sound around him. He asked barely above a whisper and above the whining sound, "You really want to do this?"

Tori jumped to the side of them, straddling the threshold of the side entrance and held up her hands. "Hey, hey, hey, everyone turn their eyes back to their normal color. There's no need to go there."

The supernatural creatures held their stares at one another for a few more moments before Beck slowly retracted his teeth and after a blink, his eyes returned to their normal color.

Dusty's eyes dimmed until his natural brown eyes were visible and the soft whine ceased.

Tori let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding and let her shoulders slump.

The former webmaster stated in a detached voice, "You bare your fangs at me again Pretty Boy and I will play dentist."

"And if you go all flashy again, I'll find away to clip your wings."

Dusty chuckled, "Oh wouldn't that be a sight if you could back up that idle threat?"

Tori interjected, "Please stop, we're all on the same side here. We shouldn't be arguing or threatening each other."

"Then remind him of that instead of trying to undermine what Freddie and Jade are trying to do. How about helping us so everyone can get on with their lives instead of being concerned that someone is going to unleash a hoard of demons on us or perhaps let out a hellgod? If you're so concern about Mason then come with me to the Boomerang Theater and try to find some answers for ourselves."

Tori glanced to Beck for his thoughts on what she thought was a good idea, but the vampire was still too upset and stubborn about the matter and about Dusty to look like he was giving any of it any serious thought.

Dusty shook his head and remarked in mild disgust towards Tori, "This was obviously a bad idea. I guess Sikowitz turned you into nothing more than a weapon to be unleashed when the Watchers say so and can't seem to think for yourself the way you're looking at him. Have a nice night Vega… just watch where he puts his fangs if you start making out." He turned and walked down the path a few feet before he disappeared from sight.

Tori snorted out a harsh breath out of her nose while crossing her arms under her shoulders then glared at Dusty's retreating form.

Sunset Pre-School  
Sunset Blvd.  
Wednesday, April 18, 2012

The armored SUV pulled up just off the preschool grounds followed by a gentleman in a well-tailored black suit stepped out of the passenger seat and walked around the back of the vehicle and to the driver side back door then opened it. Another gentleman stepped out and kept his hand closed to his lift side under the flap of his blazer jacket. Jade slid out of the seat with Ian in her arms. Under the watchful eye of the two bodyguards, Jade walked onto the school grounds and towards his classroom.

Asphalt Parking Lot  
Hollywood Arts  
Los Angeles, CA  
Wednesday, April 18, 2012

The rest of the Hollywood Art clique (including Freddie) were arriving piecemeal into the parking lot with the absence of Cat and Robbie, Tori had already arrived with Beck and looked on in mild disbelief as Jade walked into the parking lot after exiting the armored SUV. Once Jade was in earshot to the group, Tori eagerly and somewhat fearfully asked, "You have bodyguards now?"

Jade glanced over her shoulder to the gentleman by the SUV just off school grounds then back to the brunette. "Yes. Mason thinks they are a healthy precaution after finding the deadite working at the Boomerang Theater."

Beck shook his head and smirked in utter disbelief, "I still think you should cancel. You'll be one big bull's-eye for them. This is just Mason handling you."

She gave her ex-boyfriend a cold glare. "I'm not letting them sabotage my chance—I'm not letting _you_ sabotage my chances."

He motioned towards the armored SUV just off school grounds and pleaded with her, "I'm not trying to sabotage you, just trying to get you to realize what a bad idea it is to be in the awards show and work for Mason. You're needing bodyguards now."

She pointed out the obvious in her mind, "I'd need bodyguards after I become a hit."

"But you're not on tour or anything else." He pointed towards Freddie, "They're there because you're around him."

Jade glared at her ex from the accusation while Freddie pointed out with slightly raised hands, "She won't need them for long for that reason. We'll find the book soon."

The pale slayer snapped out towards Beck, "Why don't you help us find it if you care so much about me. Freddie and Dusty are the ones having to hunt down all the leads."

The vampire shook his head and slightly squinted behind his sunglasses. "Leads? What leads? You're no closer to the book than you were two days ago."

"Actually we are: we know the book is still in L.A. and the person that has it is interested in staying here for the time being with interest in the Awards Show. It's with that we can draw him or her out, so I won't be going anywhere until we find it."

"So the rest of us have to be in danger with you here in the meantime?"

Jade snapped, "We've been through this: him being here isn't endangering us. We'd be trying to stop them anyway and be in just as much danger. Why are we going over the same thing over again?"

"Because you don't get it: they're drawn to one another: book/'Promised One'. If he left, the book would follow him. It loves to torment someone like him. It would follow him out into the middle of the desert and away from anyone it could hurt."

Jade crossed her arms under her chest and ignored for the moment the glaring lack of concern that Freddie would be the only one hurt and questioned, "Is that the real reason?"

The inspiring actor squinted his eyes behind his sunglasses and retorted, "What other reason would I want him to leave? It's not personal. I don't want anyone to get hurt over that damn book."

The slayer gave him a cold, probing stare and he had known her long enough to be able to tell when she didn't believe him. "But you'd want him to just wander out in the desert hoping it would follow him?"

He passed a glance over to Freddie then reluctantly answered, but with a tenor to his voice that he believed he was correct, "If it meant that it didn't put everyone in L.A. in danger, yes."

The muscles in Jade's abdomen knotted in rage and she barely restrained herself from just hitting him. She was so inflamed that she didn't stop to think of why she was that angry.

"He has a point… usually, but it's in possession of someone that is willfully using it. Leaving won't change that, so I'm here to stop whoever has it, because it's somehow my responsibility…and I'm not skirting from it…" He glanced to Jade as he finished, "…and I'll stop it before it gets a chance to hurt you or Ian."

Her brow barely knotted in mild confusion, but quickly understood his meaning of putting her and Ian at the top of his priorities list. She swallowed down a small lump in her throat at the profoundness of her and her stepbrother being at the top of his concerned list, especially since she hadn't felt she had been on one's other than her mother's for a long time.

Before anyone could comment on his words, Freddie motioned his head to the entrance and commented, "Come on, let's not be late for class." He turned and headed inside, leaving the others behind to continue to contemplate and digest his words.

Hollywood Arts High School  
Wednesday, April 18, 2012

First lunch was just ending and Jade, Freddie and Cat entered Sikowitz's classroom, but immediately stopped as they saw three new additions in the classroom other than Sikowitz (which is a surprise once again for him to be there early for class). The lead figure was a man in his early thirties and looked like some Oxford professor or some such thing in his clothing with a young lady flanking him on either side of him, an African-American and a Cantonese.

The pale slayer cautiously questioned, "Who are you?"

The young man smiled and politely introduced himself, "I'm Andrew Wells."

Jade furled her brow and repeated, with a slight glance to Sikowitz, "Andrew?"

He nervously smiled while answering, "He's a colleague of mine."

The pale skin girl frowned as she looked back to the gentleman. "Another Watcher?"

He nonchalantly replied with a soft grin, "Yes I am."

Freddie inched closer to Jade while the pale girl asked, "Why are you here?"

Andrew offered a glance towards Freddie and decided to answer the obvious question Jade would ask of him, "The Council wanted a personal update about the whole Necronomicon situation and… we're concerned about you… working for a vampire. Now we found out that one of those Kandish demons was found working at where you're going to perform… we've come to the conclusion it looks like he has the book and using it to give him a limitless supply of demons at his disposal."

Jade turned to glare at the acting teacher which Sikowitz quickly turned his gaze away in fear. She snapped back to the  
"There is no proof of such a thing. He's concerned about their change in behavior and trying to infiltrate his business. He's stepping up the security—giving me security. You're a baseless assumption because he's a vampire—he's not even a demonic one."

The African-American slayer sharply retorted, "That's right. He's a vampire—a vampire, doesn't matter what 'kind' he is and you're working for him."

Andrew picked up, "It sounds like he's just trying to give you a false sense of security—he's even giving you security. As I understand it, your mother and father are divorced… he's really not a part of your life—it's happened to other slayers where they've been influenced to start down a terrible path."

Jade gave him a look of outright hatred while Cat quickly slipped out the back of the room, sensing something bad was about to happen.

The pale slayer maintained her gaze at the senior watcher along with the other two girls and hissed, "My personal life is none of your business. I don't work for you or want anything to do with you. Let me make this quite clear: tell Buffy to go fuck herself and while you're at it, the rest of you can fuck yourselves too. _Stay out of my life_."

The Watcher frowned along with his escorts.

Jade could see in the girls' eyes that they saw her as pretty much close to a traitor, but she didn't care. She continued with a cold tone, "I'm not part of your slayer club and I don't listen to you."

One of the escorts, an African-American young lady named Rona, snapped, "You may not be part of our 'club' but we won't allow you to go down that dark road and ignoring or outright embracing the evil of you 'benefactor'. There's been too many of you going rogue and doing whatever you want."

The dark haired slayer furiously responded, "Who the hell are you to judge me for my choices? I'm not your 'sister' like Buffy's been hell bent in trying to brainwash all of you into thinking so that you'll blindly follow her. The only thing we have in common is that her pet witch shoved a demon down our throats."

The second slayer with Andrew snapped, "You shouldn't disrespect Willow like that."

The Hollywood Art student spat out, "I'll speak about that bitch anyway I see fit. She nearly destroyed my life with what she did to me and she's lucky I don't look her up to try to settle the score."

Rona took a step towards Jade with a look in her eyes that clearly showed she was looking for a fight with her.

Freddie took a moment to look in the eyes of the slayers then took a step between Jade and the others. "I think you should leave. Everyone needs to take a step back and calm down."

Rona snapped at the Seattleite, "Stay out of our business."

"You're threatening to interfere in my friend's life, so it is my business."

The second slayer took a step forward and looked to Freddie with clear irritation across her face.

Freddie met her stare and answered without hesitation, "There are two of us and two of you, so I'm willing to take my chances because you are not going to make her do anything she doesn't want to do."

The outspoken slayer laughed, "Big talk _boy_. You obviously know what we are and what we can do."

Sikowitz jumped up from his seat and raised his hands. "Everyone just calm down for a moment. There is no need for any type of violence. We can have a healthy, calm debate of our positions."

Andrew agreed with his fellow watcher and quickly offered, "Sikowitz is right. Jade, we're only concern about the path you're heading down and we just want to talk it out."

Unlike last time he intimidated Angel into doing what Buffy wanted in regards to the mentally disturbed and abused slayer, he didn't have nearly twenty slayers backing him up and Jade and this 'Promised One' weren't afraid for a fight. It wouldn't do him any good if Jade was hurt in anyway.

Jade sarcastically answered, "Oh, you mean the path where I can wash may hands of all this supernatural bullchizz and not be at Buffy's beck and call? I'm not sorry that I'm not going to be one of her pets."

Rona looked to Andrew and stated, "Enough of this crap. She's clearly doesn't give a damn what could happen with working with a vampire. I think we should have this discussion in a more… _secure_ location where we can properly explain the situation to her."

Freddie sidestepped to stand in front of Jade and glared at Rona. "You're not touching her."

Rona smiled at the challenge… until a blinding white light burned from out of her eye sockets and mouth as she let out a horrifying scream. A moment between heartbeats later, she dropped to the floor, violently twitching.

The others looked on in horror at the sight, but the other slayer pulled out a stake and was ready to charge at him out of pure instinct, ignoring the fact that her senses hadn't picked up anyone behind them. However, Dusty was quicker with a flick of his right pointer and middle finger at her. She lifted off of her feet and was flung across the classroom and crashed hard into the opposite wall before crashing onto the ground.

She tried to shake off the blow and get back on her feet, but Dusty picked her up by the throat and looked her straight into the eyes then rapidly began to speak in Latin. She started convulsing and moments later in his reciting, her mouth opened and let out a scream as black smoke shot out of her mouth and into the air before sinking down to the floor and burning way.

He let her go and she dropped to the floor. She curled herself into a ball and shivered.

Andrew shouted as he took several steps back from the lean teenager, "What did you do?!"

Dusty turned to the flabbergasted and somewhat terrified Watcher, "I smote the piece of a demon in her that makes her a slayer. She's fine—I didn't disintegrate her eyes. She might wake up with a mild headache, but she's not a slayer anymore and that one…" He motioned to the one lying at his feet. "…I exorcised the demon part… in the name of Jesus Christ. Now if you're still interested in having a 'talk' with Jade then by all means, continue, but you might want to go get a few more slayers if you intend to use the force of arms to get her to do something she doesn't want to do."

The senior watcher took a deep breath then terrifyingly whispered out, "You have no idea what you've just done."

Dusty stared back in a cold stare. "I have a pretty good idea what I done: I killed a demon and I sent another one back to Hell—real Hell not some dimension you randomly call Hell and… they're my message to Buffy: some of us will not bow to her."

The former slayer that Dusty had destroyed the demon inside crawled up into a sitting position and spat out at him in disgust, "You'll pay for that. We know about you and will kill you just like any other demon."

He lean teenager looked down at her and smirked. He reached behind to the small of his back then pulled out a Colt .45 and pointed it down at her face while cocking the hammer back. "Or I could put one in your brainpan and not have to worry about you."

Sikowitz lifted his hands and stated in a pleading manner, "Dustin, put the gun away."

"Why? She just threatened to end my life. Why shouldn't I kill her before she gets the chance to kill me?"

Freddie offered, "Because that way it would be loud and messy?"

The nephil frowned as he saw Freddie's point then quickly holstered his weapon.

Freddie quickly crossed the distance to stare Andrew straight in the eyes. "You need to leave now… or they are going to carry you out."

The former villain nervously swallowed at seeing the dark look in Freddie's eyes and whispered, "We just want to help."

Dusty idly commented, "Help? Watchers wanting to help? That's not in your job description, especially you new ones. I know how heartless and spiteful you 'new' Watchers are capable of doing. Does the name Winifred Burkle ring a bell? The poor girl you let die just to get one over on the demonic vampire with a soul because Buffy suddenly considered him 'evil'. The way I understand it is that you still have that Old One running around in her body that she carved out to use as a meat suit. Your leadership is that petty, so please tell us how you have any moral ground to lecture Jade."

Andrew rushed to defend Giles' original decision to withhold any help, "She made her choice with signing up with Wolfram & Hart and she rightfully paid for—"

Andrew didn't get to finish as Dusty was on him in an instant and grabbed him by the throat and lifted him off of his feet. He growled, "Paid for it?!"

The sitting former slayer tried to get up to help the Watcher, but Dusty waved his right pointer and middle finger towards her and the girl was flat on her back, held in place by Dusty's will. He looked back up at the Watcher desperately clawing at his hand and continued, "This coming from a little piece of shit that helped Warren kidnap, mind control and repeatedly sexually assault his ex-girlfriend then your friend murders the Tara girl in cold blood then you tried to unleash an army of prehistoric vampires on the world? Why the redhead witch hasn't sent you to Hell is beyond me. Maybe I should correct that oversight?"

The Watcher turned white at hearing him lay out some of his darkest sins.

Dusty looked on him with disgust and tossed him to the floor then harshly glared at him. "Jade will not be another one of your 'causalities'. Leave her in peace or… you tell Buffy I'm a far better shot than Warren—I won't miss her heart."

Andrew pulled himself to his feet and motioned to the former slayers doing the same. "Come on ladies, it is time for us to leave."

The former slayers glared at the former webmaster, no doubt mentally swearing some kind of revenge on him as they retreated behind Andrew leaving through the stage side door of the classroom.

It took superhuman self-control for Dusty not to kill the girls right then and there for purely pragmatic reasons.

Sikowitz looked slightly frightened as he pointed out, "Dustin, you have a gun on school grounds."

Dusty blinked at him as if he was serious then slowly answered him, "I'm a walking nuke that could kill everyone in this school in short order and you're concerned about the forty-five I'm carrying? Really?"

The acting teacher glanced to the floor in somewhat mild embarrassment then attempted distract the others from his expression by pointing out, "You know you just made an enemy of her—Buffy."

"Yeah, but she is an enemy worth having."

Jade finally reasserted herself into the situation since of course she was the one it was centered around. She frowned as she commented, "I think I'll skip this class today. Have fun." She turned and headed out the door with Freddie quickly following her out.

* * *

Author's Note: Well that was pretty eventful. Battle lines are being drawn. Take care and thanks for reading, OneHorseShay.


	6. Chapter 6

Hello everyone! I hope everyone is doing okay. I'm slowly getting back to a normal writing schedule and hope to update some other stories soon.

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, I hope you enjoy.

Fanfic-Reader-88: Jade is her own young woman that will make her own decisions and will not be bullied into making any. Buffy may have to learn the hard way that not everyone will bow down and kiss her feet.

darck ben: As I said in my PM, it's not about hate, but an accurate description of what her organization did post-Buffy in the final season of Angel: The Series. Xander may have fought with no powers and could be considered brave for such actions, but in a real fight, he is pretty much useless because he never really learned to fight. You want a real example of someone like that, look to Charles Gunn on Angel. However, Xander has a lot of other strong qualities that would allow him to get along with Freddie.

metal rider: I have not gone into details about how exactly their relationship ended in this quantum reality, but Jade reopening the door would just have been an acceptance of his unacceptable behavior towards her. You're right about if only one person is fighting for it, too bad that Beck never put up a fight for it, but only against her and trivialized her concerns about their relationship.

Tori just hadn't arrived back from lunch. They have lunch before his class starts.

Boris Yeltsin: Might have a few more cameos before this story is over.

Challenge King: In this story, Mason is quite old and is a pragmatist after five centuries or more. He's one that has a different moral code developed after centuries from a root morality starting in the early 16th Century. Hero/Villain doesn't necessarily line up with what he would perceive one to be.

It's an odd family unit the three has formed without verbal acknowledgement.

Twilight Warrior 627: I've actually not really consulted Season 8 that continued in the comics, but independently just considered some of the ramifications of having a new, big player in the supernatural game led by a girl who thinks the world really does revolve around her. It was just another demon to smite. It's a good question whether Buffy will show up in time before the end of the story, but if she does decide or has the time to get her hands dirty in this minor thing in the grand scheme of it all when another thousand slayers are running around without her control, she's going to get a rude awakening in not being able to bully or emotionally play on Jade as she can with Faith.

Also, check out PD31's updates along with Fanfic-Reader-88's stories… I'm hoping he'll update soon with his interesting trio. One last thing, if you haven't seen Liz Gillies desert photoshoot, you really should take the time.

Rating: T

* * *

Chapter 6

Playground  
Sunset Pre-School  
Sunset Blvd  
Los Angeles, CA  
Wednesday, April 18, 2012

It was Jade's lunch time and after grabbing a quick bite, she was right next door at the pre-school playground. She stood at the bottom of a slide to catch Ian after making his way down. Ian laughed up a storm when he reached the bottom of the slide and his step-sister catching him under his armpits. Jade in return wore a rarely seen genuine smile, taken by the playful situation. He quickly pulled from her grasp and ran back to climb back up and wait his turn to slide down again. Jade waited at the bottom for him to slide again and in the meantime to get to his turn, would catch some of the other children.

The teachers were not necessarily thrilled with her being over there during her lunch hour—every lunch hour for the last several weeks, but none of them were brave enough to attempt to challenge her.

Freddie and Dusty sat on a bench at the edge of the playground just keeping a watchful eye on the situation; well Dusty was keeping an eye around their surroundings while Freddie watched the stepsiblings spend some quality time with one another.

The Seattleite apparently was able to split his attention and questioned, "How did you know all that stuff about Andrew? Did you look inside him?"

"No, I didn't. It's just like the 'normal world': people talk in the supernatural world and stories and rumors get around about people and he likes to run his mouth, plus… all organizations are susceptible to infiltration."

Freddie turned his head and looked almost dumbfounded towards him. "There're spies in her organization?"

Dusty nodded his head to the side. "Certain people have worked their way into trusted positions—positions that aren't really all that trusted yet have access to certain things. This Andrew fellow has not kept it a secret about what he's done. He's on the 'confess' everything kick and after that be all sorry and try to seek redemption from everyone around him. They should have put him down or at least cut his dick off for precaution. How do you cure a rapist?" Dusty shook his head and answered his own question, "It's a rhetorical question, you don't."

Freddie squinted at him in confusion. "So they let someone like him in their trusted ranks, but they're terrified of Jade being 'evil'? Try to give her an intervention?"

"I think they're afraid of what happened with Faith will happen with Jade. I guess someone is seeing parallels—they see… parallels between them."

Freddie squinted his eyes and asked with clear confusion in his voice, "Who's Faith? I've heard the name from Jade, but she hasn't really shared all that slayer stuff with me other than 'I want out' as fast as she can and Carly's still mostly in the dark about everything."

Dusty took a deep breath then turned his attention back to watch their surroundings. "From my understanding, Faith is the last called vampire slayer—_the_ vampire slayer—and she has a… sorted history and a very antagonistic one with Buffy, as in they've nearly killed each other several times."

"I thought Buffy was _the_ slayer. That's why they follow her."

The leaner teenager cracked a smile. "She's not; she's just got better PR than Faith and she was the one that did the slayer duties the longest since Faith was in a coma then prison for years with the old Watcher council backing Buffy most of the time. The potentials at that time rallied around Buffy for leadership when one of Lucifer's Knights of Hell was trying to wipe out the line. At some point during that, the first potentials came to the belief that 'God' had ordained Buffy to be their leader and would punish them if they followed anyone else… supposedly they nearly got blown to bits during the one time Faith led them into battle—as if Buffy had done any better in the previous encounter."

Freddie was becoming more confused whether than enlightened about the situation. "Faith was in a coma? In prison? How did she land in prison?"

"That's where the parallels come involved they're seeing with Jade: no father figure, taken in by a guy that was a father figure, but was actually an evil mastermind. Faith was his muscle and since he was evil with one of those mad schemes they get out of a villain's handbook, she did some pretty bad things—things that we really don't know all the details about yet got her locked up—and they think Jade could repeat with Thornesmith."

"So that's why they were trying to be preemptive with an 'intervention'?"

Dusty chuckled, "Hypocrisy and favoritism is their operating mottos. They get offended and defensive that people would be concerned about them being a threat yet they operate on the exact same assumption with any slayer that doesn't fall in line behind Buffy is a potential threat that needs to be dealt with."

"You seem to understand them far better than any of us—except for Sikowitz and he looks like he's siding with them—so, what would have happened if you hadn't stepped in?"

"You saw how one of the slayers acted: they thought they should have taken her, probably back to England."

A bit of darkness slipped into Freddie's voice as he had a inkling what the answer was to his question, "For what?"

"Some form of 'rehabilitation' or…"

"Or what?"

Dusty turned his head and looked Freddie straight in the eyes. "They are not above killing their own if they consider them 'rogue' and after I just sent them packing, failing miserably in their 'mission'… I'd keep an eye on Vega."

The more muscular teenager knotted his brow. "Why?"

"She's the closest slayer to Jade who loyal to them that would be able to carry out a kill order on her."

The Seattleite deeply frowned and whispered out coldly, "She wouldn't do that."

Dusty barely nodded his head in Jade's direction. "You're willing to bet Jade's life on that? How well do you really know Tori?"

Freddie whispered with a chilled voice, "How well do I really know you?"

The former webmaster smiled and answering in an easy going manner, "Enough to know that I have no intrinsic reason to hurt her… I did get you Ira for Ian and… you don't have the firepower to put me down if it came to it."

Freddie turned his attention back to the stepsibling and saw them laughing up a storm with Jade kneeling down beside the slide and tickling Ian's stomach as she held him. He question barely above a whisper over the playful sounds of children playing, "Is Buffy my enemy now? Is her whole army my enemy?"

The nephil shrugged his shoulder and dryly answered, "I guess it depends on how much you care about Jade… if you want to keep fighting after you've destroyed that damned book."

Freddie took a soft breath and slowly released it.

The expression Dusty saw on Freddie's face answered the question and that the war with the Slayers could start sooner than anyone thought and started by one man.

Hollywood Arts  
Los Angeles, CA

The first lunch period was nearly over as the trio of students entered through the side entrance of the school into the main hallway for Freddie and Jade to head for Sikowitz's class while Dusty didn't have really anything to do since he didn't have a third period class anymore.

They were just to the front of the stairwell when Tori walked up to the trio and demanded of Dusty, "How could you do that?!"

Dusty returned with a carefree expression. "Do what?"

She spat out, "You know exactly what I mean!"

A few surrounding students still lingering the halls and stairwell before heading to lunch turned their attention towards the clearly irritated brunette.

The lean teenager tilted his head to the side and asked, "Do you really want this conversation in public—I'm not going with you into the janitor's closet?"

She turned and headed down the hall, presumably to Sikowitz's class with the assumption that they would follow her. She stopped in her tracks at about her locker when she realized that he wasn't following her, only Jade and Freddie.

He lazily shrugged a shoulder and answered, "What? Do you think I have any obligation to follow you? You might be leading me into an ambush."

The word 'ambush' caught a few more students' attention and Tori quickly walked back to him. She darted her eyes back and forth to see frighten the other students to mind their own business then hissed out, "I'm not leading you into a trap. I want to talk to you."

He leaned forward and whispered to the brunette slayer, "I hope not for your sake or I'll flash fry anything and everything in the room—including you."

She narrowed her eyes and bit her tongue with a tightly set jaw. She turned and he decided to follow her with Freddie and Jade quickly trailing behind to make sure nothing happened.

Tori led the three into the room to a cold welcome from Beck (sitting in a colorful chair) and Sikowitz (sitting one a step on the stage) were waiting in the room. Dusty glanced between the vampire and Watcher then looked to Tori while Jade and Freddie stood off to the side in the room to quietly watch the unfolding scene.

The brunette snapped, "What on Earth possessed you to do such a thing?! To do that to them?!"

Dusty looked to her with an impassive expression and softly retorted, "They threatened Jade, so I dealt with them. If I hadn't, it would have been a two-on-two fight anyway." He cocked his head to the side and teased Tori, "Which side would have you taken?"

She sharply snapped in irritation, "I wouldn't want them to fight in the first place and you don't know that was what they were planning to do."

"They're Buffy's slayers. They slay on her orders without a second thought and never ask questions—a nasty habit it looks like you are starting to pick up from that nest stunt. They see Jade as a potential threat and they won't hesitate to eliminate that threat—including ordering you to kill Jade if they deem it necessary."

"They wouldn't do that!"

Dusty lazily turned his attention to Sikowitz and smiled, challenging the Watcher to refute him.

The teenagers turned to look to the acting teacher, expecting him to readily refute the nephil's point.

However, Sikowitz wore an awkward expression and turned his face away.

Tori's face fell when he hesitated in answering while a small tremor of dread rippled through Jade and a spike of anger shot through Freddie.

Sikowitz looked back to the teenagers and hesitantly answered, "Tori, you have to understand that a rogue slayer is too dangerous to be able to run free and sometimes there is no other choice but to… 'stop' them from hurting other people. It is not an easy or quick decision as Dustin is trying to make it out to be."

The former webmaster was quick to rebut the assertion, "It is quick as Buffy decides and if she does, her word is law and they carry it out without hesitation. The upper level Watchers can make that same decision without her." He motioned toward the door by the stage as he finished his point, "And that little piece of shit being here proves they're close to making that decision."

Jade nearly growled out her question to Sikowitz, "So they really do look at me as one? Do I have a target painted on my back?"

"I don't know. Andrew and I haven't talked after he left. I don't know what he's reporting back… or what orders he could be getting."

The pale slayer crossed her arms under her chest and asked, "So now I have to watch my back with other slayers?" She looked to Tori and gave her a guarded expression.

Tori frowned with a bit of hurt shining in her eyes that Jade would think such a thing about her.

Sikowitz picked up, "I think you should tone down the hostility and seriously consider disassociating yourself with Mason. It could quickly ease the tension and give them time to reevaluate anything they are thinking."

The blue hair highlighted teenager snapped to the acting teacher, "Sounds like you're just using doing your 'daddy Sikowitz' shtick to try to get me to do what you want like you did back during Christmas or Tori and my 'date' at Nozu. Forget it Sikowitz; it just sounds like the same damn demand they just handed me." She slightly turned and shook her head. She spat out as she headed for the back door of the classroom, "I'm taking the rest of the day."

The others looked stunned at the sudden turn in her attitude to Sikowitz with Tori softly calling out, "Jade?"

The inspiring musician ignored her while exiting the room.

The other except for Freddie remained in place, mildly stunned, while he immediately started chasing after her.

Abandoned Warehouse  
West Hollywood  
Wednesday, April 18, 2012

The double doors burst open, flooding at least half the room with the natural sunlight of the noon day, sending the lounging vampires into a scurried panic. The rays of light were partially blocked with three individuals casting shadows, the middle individual being Mason.

Randy pub cautiously approached the record executive, careful not to be caught in the light of the sun from any quick movements from the unwanted guests. The rest of the squatters harshly glared at him as he walked inside with four other well-dressed individuals, each carrying a shortened M4 carbine. Mason took off his sunglasses and slipped them into his inside breast pocket of his blazer jacket as one of the other gentlemen closed the doors behind them.

The lead vampire shouted, "You have a lot of balls just walking in here."

Mason confidently approached took a seat and settled himself into a surprisingly well maintained comfortable chair. He snorted out dismissively, "Bollocks? Hardly…" His face became a grim expression. "I'm the King of L.A. I don't fear walking through my realm."

Randy spat out in disgust, "King? You're no king."

The record owner casually continued with a near smug expression in his face, "Yes, I am your king and you are my vassal and it is time for you to recognize me as such."

The younger vampire looked to him with outright furry, but Mason smiled and continued with a pleasant tone, "Oh it's not so bad. It's actually a very good deal for you and your brethren. The arrangement is as such: I let your little nest live in my city and I will provide you blood—human blood and in return, you do not hunt and you fight for me when I call—which most of the time is to simply maintain the peace for you to enjoy as well."

The teenage vampire shook his head as he had a seat on the makeshift coffee table in front of the couch. "You're in the wrong century pal. This is the twenty-first century, not medieval times."

Mason glanced away and nodded his head. "I am old and sometimes I forget what century I'm living in. Just when I get used to a century, another one rolls around, but…"

He put on a bright smile and continued, "It's a system to maintain order and peace in this city, something it hasn't had as of late and I intend to change that. You heard about the nest operating a few blocks from here that lost a few to the 'Promised One' a few nights ago?"

Randy remained silent, but lacked a real poker face to hide the fact that he was aware of the slight swift in potential power.

Mason continued, not caring what visible reaction Randy was having with the news, "It would be natural for you to simple try to take advantage of the situation and advance into their holding. That of course would lead to more chaos and violence, something I don't want."

"I don't care. We need blood and if they get in our way… then we'll deal with them. They join, leave or die. It doesn't make much difference to me."

He smugly smiled. "However, that nest is a vassal and as such, I'm obligated to protect them from outside threats. I can do this by taking you as another vassal and assuring that there will not be any encroachment of one or the other or… I simply wipe you out and let them absorb your territory or I could just kill you, have this same conversation with your second."

Mason motioned his hand back and forth. "If you're thinking he or she wouldn't then I would kill him or her too and I can keep going until someone agrees or I simply kill you all."

Randy glanced over to his fellow vampires, waiting to pounce from various pieces of furniture and boxes. He confidently remarked to Mason, "There are five of you and twelve of us."

Mason gently corrected, "Five of us with automatic weapons."

He laughed, "Guns? You finally invented the mythical wooden bullet?"

The mocking questions drew laughter from his fellow vampires.

The record executive softly laughed along while his bodyguards held back mild smirks. He blew out an unneeded breath then rhetorically asked, "From your reaction, I take it that you won't take my deal?

"You can take your deal and shove it right up your pompous ass."

Mason smirked and slightly tilted his head to the side. "I have a better idea: I think I'll just kill you."

Randy let out a hearty laugh, one that his fellow vampires quickly joined. Once he finished his laugh, he strained to respond, "Kill me? Why don't you try old man?"

The record executive maintained a pleasant smile and reached into the left side of his blazer. He pulled out an old Webley revolver and took an admiring glance at the borderline antique in his hand. "I've carried this since the second World War. I killed plenty of Jerries with it during the war… killed a few werewolves with it as I recall. Hitler had a thing with werewolves—bastard—she's served me well for the last seventy years…" He pointed the revolver at the demonic vampire's chest and squeezed the trigger.

The round tore through undead tissue and bone and lodged somewhere in his heart. The round going in hurt from being shot of course, but that irritated him more than anything until he felt a burning sensation for half an instant then screamed as he felt himself dissolving. What remained of him of course was a pile of dust left on the table and floor several moments later.

The other demonic vampires back away in shock at seeing such a thing just as Mason's bodyguards raised their weapons and pointed at the demonic creatures.

Mason smiled and lazily stated, "Now there are eleven of you and we still have automatic weapons that can do the same thing, so now, who do I negotiate with now?"

Hollywood Arts  
Los Angeles, CA

"Jade? Jade?!" Freddie called out while he chased after the attractive pale teenager.

Jade blew out a loud breath and stopped in her tracks just next to the drink machines. She turned to see Freddie catching up with her wearing a concerned expression.

He asked in a near helpless voice, "Where are you going?"

She glanced away from his sympathetic eyes and answered, "I'm just getting out of this school. No one wants to support my decision—even Cat in private is worried and hinted that she doesn't want me to do it. They're all trying to talk me out of it and now I have to worry about maybe Tori literally putting a knife in my back."

Freddie gently rested a hand on Jade's upper right arm and reassuringly whispered, "Tori is not going to do that. You can't believe."

She snapped her head up to look him straight in the eyes and whispered out coldly, "Don't tell me what I can or can't believe."

He didn't flinch from her challenging expression and answered, "I don't believe you really believe that. It's one thing about this little rivalry going on between you for the last few years, it's another to think that she'll murder you in cold blood because some girl over five thousand miles away tells her to."

She crossed her arms under her chest and let out a soft breath while glancing towards the floor.

"Jade, don't confuse her concern for your safety with potentially jealous over the PMAs."

She looked up to meet his eyes again and soften her expression. "Are you concerned about my… _loyalties_ when it comes to Mason? I'll just be a 'rogue' slayer?"

He slightly nodded his head. "No, I'm concerned with him hurting you or putting you in a situation where you could get hurt and exactly how I would get to him through all his guards and security to kill him if he tries… and now the Slayers if they want to 'talk' to you again."

Jade sucked in a sharp breath through her nose, surprised for the second time that day for his concern for her and wanting to protect her. She was so lost in that thought for a moment that she barely caught him asking her in a soft voice, "So, do you think we can go back to class? Just put the tension aside about how everyone's disagreeing? Sikowitz can still teach something."

"No, I just can't be in the same room with them right now—the subtle threats and disapproval. I think I'm just going to spend the rest of the day over at the preschool with Ian. I can be a… 'volunteer'."

He nodded in understanding. "Okay. Just put all this chizz to the side for the afternoon and be happy with Ian. I'll just try to run some interference and maybe smooth things over while you're gone. I'll see you this afternoon. I'll get a ride from someone, so don't worry about me."

She let a relieving smile appear on her face and nodded her head. She wasn't sure what possessed her to do such a thing, perhaps that heart of a demon inside her, but she took a step towards him and placed a gentle peck of his left cheek then whispered, "Thanks."

She suppressed a blushing smile as she turned the corner to the main hallway with the lockers, leaving him with a slightly stunned expression.

While Freddie stood there to gather his thoughts and process what just happened, Dusty quietly walked up from behind Freddie then cleared his throat.

The tech-producer turned and glanced to his fighting companion. "Eavesdropping?"

Dusty cracked the softest of smiles and answered, "Unintentional. I am a partial celestial being; overhearing from a distance isn't a problem."

Freddie nodded in acknowledgement.

"So, if your intention is to protect Jade from the Slayers and potentially Mason, you may want to eliminate your primary threat before getting yourself into a two front war."

The Seattleite glanced away to the side towards the floor and mumbled, "The book and Dagon."

The nephil gave a barely perceived nod of his head as he agreed, "The book and the hellgod."

Freddie looked up and stated with an authoritative voice, "Then let's find that damn book."

Dusty casually remarked, "We have zero leads now. Where do you want to start?"

Freddie raised a hand to cover his mouth as he contemplated an answer, which fortunately came to his mind quickly. He dropped the hand and looked to Dusty's eyes. "Then we go back. We interrogated the mess out of that demon, but what about her? The girl."

Dusty raised an intrigued eyebrow.

"She had to get infected at some point somewhere. Find out her habits and maybe track down the guy that has the book then… put it and him down."

Apartment Complex  
Los Angeles, CA  
Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Freddie had decided to ditch out of school as well, not really concerned about any grades at this point while visiting the performing arts high school. He felt he had a new sense of purpose on top of how the book had been the focal point of his life for the last several months.

Freddie was one step ahead of Dusty as they walked down the hallway towards the apartment and were just several feet away from arriving when Dusty raised his hand in front of Freddie's chest to signal for him to stop.

The Seattleite knotted his brow and quickly asked, "What?"

Dusty's eyes shifted back and forth while he looked off to nowhere in particular. "She's not alone… the undead kind, at least one of them with several humans."

"She let vampires in?"

"He's not demonic. He doesn't don't need an invitation."

"Can you tell an exact count?"

Dusty stopped just in front of the door and placed his hand just over the peephole, but not touching the door. "There're four. Two near the door and the other two further inside. One near the door is the vamp." He looked over his shoulder and asked, "How do you want to play this?"

Freddie thought for a moment then motioned his head towards the door. "You don't need a door…"

The leaner teenager grinned and between the blink of an eye, Dusty vanished from his spot with the accompanying whooshing of air.

Freddie shook his head then knocked on the door. He waited a few seconds until the door cracked open to reveal half the lovely blonde's face.

"Hello, I'm sorry to disturb you ma'am, but could I speak with you? I wouldn't be bothering you at all if it wasn't important."

She swallowed and looked over her right shoulder, but Freddie couldn't see what she was looking at with the door blocking his view. "This isn't a good time."

He sympathetically whispered, "I know." He surprised her by quickly grabbing her exposed wrist and pulled her around the door at the same time he kicked it inward. While she was now safely in the hallway with him, the door bounced from hitting someone behind and sending him into the floor. The 'Promised One' quickly entered the apartment and drew a Barrette from the back of his waist and pointed at a second individual to his left in the living room, close enough to feel the person's unnaturalness and assuming he was the vampire of the group.

Two other well-dressed individuals were with him in the living room and attempted to draw their own weapons under the flap of their blazers. They were stopped from such an act by Dusty appearing behind the middle one and held the silver blade to his throat while pointing his Colt forty-five at another one with his left hand. He hissed into the ear of the one, "Reach for it and I'll decapitate you and I'll put a blessed round in the head of the other one."

Freddie demand at the one he had his weapon trained, "Who are you and why are you here?"

He glanced over to his associate to his left with the blade to his throat, as if trying to work out some plan to turn the odds back to their favor.

Dusty dug the edge of the blade into his neck. "Someone needs to answer him or he's going to put a blessed round in your face and you'll start flapping around like a fish then and three people whose bodies would never be found."

The one Freddie was eyeing reluctantly answered while raising his hands, "Look, we're all on the same side here. Mason wanted to check on her and find out if she knew anything else about her experience. He just wanted to help out Miss West and you, that's all."

Freddie glanced over his shoulder to see the fright in the young lady's eyes. "I don't think she appreciates you here. We're taking it from here and tell him I'll give him a call to fill him in afterwards."

The boss of the four gentlemen frowned, but realized it would be quite messy if he attempted to argue with the use of violence. He figured that Mason would tear his throat out if he tried to hurt the young man or alienate the other young man holding weapons at two of his men when Mason was trying to bring him into their organization. He motioned his head towards the door and instructed, "Gentlemen, Mister Benson and his associate will continue—helping Ms. Clyne."

The others didn't look too pleased with the change in plans, especially the one picking himself off the floor and holding his nose so he wouldn't bleed on his expensive shirt or jacket.

Dusty pulled the blade away from one's throat and lowered his sidearm at the other. Freddie stepped aside and let them file out one by one, under his and Dusty's watchful eye.

The vampire passed a quick glance to the young woman, but she glanced away not to look into his eyes. Once the four gentlemen walked down the hallway and turned the corner, Freddie looked to the blonde and softly asked, "Can we speak now ma'am?"

JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. LIVE  
900 W Olympic Blvd  
Los Angeles, CA

Dusty shook his head as he looked up at the impressive near five star hotel. "It happened right next door to it… but this is a needle in a haystack—without a magnet."

Freddie was standing beside him from across the street to look at the impressive structure that was in easy walking distance to theater, one of the main attractions the hotel advertised. After a surprisingly pleasant talk of a few hours with the young woman that actually calmed her and let her get at least a little bit of a handle about what happened to her—possibly being able to leave her apartment without being terrified that it could happen again, but not until whoever did it to her was 'dealt with'—they were able to find out that she recalled it happening as she was passing by the hotel to eat in the restaurant for lunch to treat herself.

The tech-producer commented, "Yeah, maybe so, but you can see their real faces."

The nephil slightly frowned as he looked to his companion and retorted, "Yeah, but do you want to just stakeout here? Even if I see one, that's not going to narrow down which room the guy is staying. The guy may never leave his room to infect who he wants. Just infect someone from the cleaning staff or a waiter for room service then they can just jump from person to person."

The Seattelite blew out a breath from his nose, slightly irritated at the daunting task of trying to find someone in such a large hotel, especially since they didn't have a clue who or a description of the person possessing the book. However, a thought occurred to him to help narrow down the search. He idly asked, "If you were staying in a near five star hotel, what room would you pick?"

"If I could afford it? I'd pick the most expensive room they had and enjoy the hospitality."

Freddie smiled as he was thinking the same thing. That would seriously narrow down the possibility if they were correct. He was about to suggest that they make their way up to those rooms when his phone rang with the Galaxy Wars theme. He quickly reached in his pocket. He recognized the number as being from Mrs. West and quickly answered the call, but immediately heard shouting on the other end.

He pressed a finger into his other ear to see if he could hear better and shouted, "Mrs. West?!"

"_These girls broke in and Jade's fig—"_

That was all he heard before the line went dead and he vainly shouted, "Mrs. West?! Mrs. West?!"

He turned to Dusty and shouted, "We need to get to Jade's house NOW!"

* * *

Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Hopefully the next one will be out sometime early next week. Stay tuned for it and my other stories updating over the next two weeks. Thanks for reading.


	7. Chapter 7

Hello everyone. I have another chapter ready and I hope you enjoy. I was going to wait a little longer before posting as to lessen the gap until the next chapter as I plan for that one early next week, but decided to go ahead and post. I want to hopefully get the next iGuess We're Roommates chapter out by Thursday.

Jeremy Shane: Thank you and another chapter.

darck ben: I think the ball was dropped with not ever truly resolving the whole Faith/Xander thing onscreen. I don't know if it ever was in the comics. If Xander appears, I'll treat him right and the same with Faith as she was always one of my personal favorites. Oh, who's Dawn? :D

Fanfic-Reader-88: You're about to see what happens to those that came knocking. You're welcome for the shout out.

Twilight Warrior 627: Twist and turns as 'the book' is not the only plot of the story. We'll see who came after Jade and what will the aftermath be. Dagon comes from very early source material from the first Evil Dead I believe as one of the demons, yet his is also a pagan deity, so I split the difference that will be explored later.

Rating: T/Borderline M for violence/language

PD31 and Fanfic-Reader-88 both have updated, so you should check them out after reading this. However, Fanfic's story is not for younger readers. Reader discretion is advised. You've been warned.

* * *

Chapter 7

West Residence  
Los Angeles, CA

Jade's right fist collided with the Asian decent girl and she went face first into the kitchen counter, cracking the granite countertop with her forehead and leaving a smear of blood. Her head bounced off the counter and she rolled to the floor unconscious.

She was the second slayer to be successfully put down in the five minute battle that had already seemed like an eternity for Jade in holding off five slayers at once, the first one being a hotheaded slayer that thought she could brute strength rush the pale slayer but ended up with Jade's favorite scissors lodged in her throat. Her spine severed from the base of her skull and dead on the floor with blood seeping out onto the foyer to the front door.

The rest of the house already bore the scars of the battle with the slayers as the heavy oak dining room table was demolished, several of the spirals of the stair guardrail (one Jade had used to lodge in one of the slayers shoulders) and several other pieces of furniture turned over along with some indentations in several walls.

Jade was a little worst for wear, but she was still holding her own with her bottom lip was split and she had been hit so hard across her left eyebrow, her brow ring was torn out and some blood flowing into her left eye. The wound and the bit of blood getting in her eye burned and stung, but it drove her own to fight harder. She was glad she had decided to wear her black and red skirt today as it gave her a slight edge in mobility against the other slayers.

After the second slayer went down, two more of the five slayers rushed her, one from the dining room after picking herself up from the broken table, and one from the living room entrance in the hopes of catching her from two sides.

Jade kicked out, hitting the one charging from the dining room in the stomach and sending her flying towards the bottom of the stairs at the other end of the kitchen and just past the dining room. The pale slayer turned to face the other intruder, but the girl was able to catch Jade from the side and driving her into the side of the counter of the island.

The pale slayer growled in frustration from her side striking the unforgiving edge of the countertop, fortunate not to crack any ribs as she struggled with the other slayer grasping the shoulder of her long black cardigan. She got one hand around the other slayer's throat and one on her shoulder, trying to push her away. They twisted and turned until Jade was turned around and driven backwards to the opposite counter top from the separation wall between the kitchen and living room.

The other slayer also had the advantage of having in her other hand being free and holding a pistol gripped taser. She had pulled out the unit from the front of the taser that would fire the metal prongs, exposing directly the leads to use as a traditional stun-gun, before charging her fellow slayer and now took the opportunity to slip between Jade's arms and press it to the left side of the pale singer's throat.

Jade screamed as the electrical charge coursed through her directly to her brain and before seizing up her muscles, particularly her esophagus.

In the living room, Mrs. West was on her back, the cell phone she had used to call Freddie disregarded somewhere on the floor several feet away from her. She was too busy to try to call again as she held a carving knife upwards at the throat of the fifth slayer she was struggling to kill, but she was losing the battle over the demon powered girl. She heard the scream of her little girl and her blood went cold. She turned her head while struggling to see her daughter seizing up and slumping over the counter with a taser gleefully pressed against her neck to make her suffer than just to incapacitate her. "Jade!"

The matriarch turned her attention back to the slayer and rallied all her strength, calling upon every motherly instinct that would allow a mother nearly impossible feats of strength in a dire emergency. She roared in righteous anger and caught the teenager off guard with shoving the blade into the girl's throat and the end sticking out of the other side.

The slayer looked down at her in horror and coughed up a bit of blood onto Mrs. West's face (along with blood from her neck spilling all over the top of her shirt) before the dying girl rolled off of her. She quickly disregarded the girl and pulling the blade out as she still had a death grip on the handle. She pulled herself on her feet to see that her daughter was going into a seizure with foaming drool starting to fall from her mouth.

Mrs. West was about to run and leap over the couch to tackle the girl with the intent of stabbing her to death, but she was blinded and quickly shielded her eyes as the slayer holding Jade screamed in horror and pain as her eyes burned out of her sockets with a blinding white/yellowish light and a high pitch whine sounded throughout the entire first floor.

The light stopped just as abruptly as it had began and the girl released Jade and dropped to the floor, her mind overcome with shock as the heart of the demon residing in her was destroyed along with her eyes and tongue. Jade started to fall as well, her nerves to the point of near overload and unable to respond from the prolonged electrical shock, but Dusty caught her with his right arm.

The Asian slayer that Jade had put down by bashing her head into the counter had managed to get back on her feet and tried to charge Dusty, but he threw out his open left palm to jab her directly in the sternum, breaking literally half her ribs and sending the girl flying back into the stainless steel door of the refrigerator. There was an audible crack from her back hitting the refrigerator, leaving a considerable dent in the door before she collapsed in a heap onto the kitchen floor.

Freddie having appeared next to Dusty, immediately saw the slayer at the stairs finally pick herself up to reengage in the fight, but the 'Promised One' would have none of that. He charged at her and speared her with his right shoulder before lifting her from her feet and slamming her down on the hard kitchen floor.

He straddled her stomach and started rapidly forearming the girl in the face. After the first few swings of smashing his forearm into her face, going right through her feeble attempts to protect her face even with her demon enhanced strength, he broke her nose and started sending blood flying from her nose and mouth (along with a few teeth). A few more swings and the girl was unconscious, but he swung a few more times in fury for some satisfaction of hurting the girl that had attacked Jade.

The thought of Jade crossed his mind, causing him to stop his beatdown. He stood up and didn't bother a second glance at her while he turned to see that Dusty was sitting and cradling the trembling teenager while Mrs. West gently stroked her daughter's forehead and whispering to her.

He knelt down to the slayer's left and next to Mrs. West. He looked on in near panic that Jade was still involuntarily shaking while clearly unconscious, drooling on herself and her eyes rolling to the back of her head. He looked to Dusty with a desperate expression, expecting him to do something.

The nephil slightly shook his head and whispered, "I don't know how that demon part inside of her will react."

Freddie quickly snapped, "I don't care about the damn demon part. Kill it if you have to, just help her."

"She does or we would have gotten it out of her from the start."

The two stared at one another for a few seconds until Mrs. West interrupted, "Dusty please. We'll deal with what happens."

He nodded then looked to the girl still trembling in his arms. He had shifted her to his left arm before Freddie had knelt down, so he lifted his free right hand and gently pressed his pointer and middle finger to her forehead.

A slight vacuum sound later, Jade opened her eyes and took a deep breath, her shaking instantly ending, the messy drool and blood gone from her lips and down her chin and her wounds healed. He helped her sit up and she glanced around to see the three. Her eyes nearly shot out at seeing the blood all over her mother's neck and shirt. "Mom?"

She rested a hand on her daughter's shoulder and quickly reassured her, "I'm okay. It's not mine."

Jade nodded then looked to Freddie just before he pulled her into an embrace and gently rocked with her in his arms. He kissed her temple then whispered a thanks to God that she was alright. She lifted her arms to gently return the hug, relaxing in his embrace and feeling an overwhelming sense of safety.

The pair held onto each other for a few seconds, each feeling that something a little deeper than worrying about the other's safety, before Jade whispered, "Ian?"

She pulled away from him and got up from the floor to dash up the stairs, stepping over the unconscious and blooded slayer sprawled out at the foot of the stairs.

As she ran up to check on Ian, Freddie stood up and walked around Dusty to the slayer struggling to get up after impacting the refrigerator. She was having a considerable tough time doing such a thing as her legs where not moving and fighting back a collapsed lung.

He leaned down and grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and lifted her off the floor with her feet slightly dangling. He looked her directly in the eye and whispered, "Where's Andrew?"

The girl gathered a bit of spittle with blood in her mouth then spat the mixture in Freddie's face.

He closed his eyes as it hit his cheek then slowly blew out a breath. He opened his eyes and kept a cold stare.

She defiantly whispered, "I can't feel my legs; do you think I'm going to tell you shit?"

He dragged her to kitchen island to lay her across it and whispered while maintaining his harsh glare, "Dusty, get me a knife. We're going to cut the demon out of her and then we'll see how willing she is to talk."

The slayer swallowed in fear as she was able to see two of her sisters unconscious on the floor, one in shock from her eyes being burned out of their sockets.

* * *

Ian hid under his bed in Jade's room as soon as she had shouted for him to stay in the room and lock the door. Ira remained with him inside and growled and barked at the door as he sensed someone approaching the locked door until Jade shouted, _"Honey, open the door. It's Jadey."_

The dog calmed as the child crawled out from under the bed and reached the door, turning the handle to unlock it. A relieved smile appeared on his face at seeing the pale teenager.

She knelt down and pulled him tightly against her and gently rubbed the back of his head.

He whispered in a timid voice, "I heard shouting and stuff downstairs and—"

She closed her eyes and whispered in return in her ear, "It's okay, it's okay… mommy's here. Mommy's here."

Her words relaxed the child in her arms and they held one another.

Van Nuys Airport  
Los Angeles, CA

Andrew relaxed in his chair on the private jet while he sipped his very expensive drink and watched some random DVD on his laptop sitting on the table in front of him. He had nothing better to do than wait for his slayers to return with Jade so they could head back to Scotland and have a more controlled setting to explain the situation to the teenager. He was so engrossed in the movie and relaxing, he barely heard the door to the back of the cabin opened and he lazily remarked, "Ah, you're back. I hope it wasn't too—"

He was interrupted when he felt the cold barrel of a pistol pressed to the side of his throat. He froze in place from the contact and a colder whisper, "They're not coming. You'll be going back to England by yourself."

The Watcher slightly turned his head and glanced upward to see Freddie's penetrating stare. He swallowed the lump of fear threatening to come up as he felt his stomach sinking then he whispered fearfully, "How did you… where are the girls?"

"Well, two of them are dead, another doesn't have her tongue and eyes anymore and another one's rib cage has collapsed with a broken back… fortunately the last one only has a broken nose, a few busted out teeth and a broken jaw. Oh, and we exorcized or killed the demon part of the surviving slayers."

Andrew's first reaction was to think Freddie was bluffing, but the look in the teenager's eyes told him differently. "Wh-where are they?"

"We dropped them off at various hospitals for treatment along your dead to be properly taken care of."

"What are you going to do now? Kill me?"

Freddie took a soft breath and remained silent for a few moments, causing in Andrew's mind the tension to rise in the airplane cabin. The Seattleite finally whispered, "I've thought about it, but I need you alive right now."

Fear quickly turned into confusion for the Watcher and he asked without thinking, "Need me?"

"Yes." He motioned towards the laptop and instructed, "I assume you video chat with your bosses in England? Keep them up to date as to what's going on?"

"Yes."

"Good. I want to speak to someone that actually has some authority, maybe Buffy herself."

"And if I say no?"

Freddie pressed the barrel of the gun a little harder against the side of Andrew's neck and whispered, "Get them on the screen or I'll send you back to them in a body bag as my message."

The former villain fearfully swallowed then quickly turned to end the movie and started the video chatting program. He quickly typed then the pair waited a few seconds for the chat to be answered. An older gentleman with glasses appeared on the screen and he immediately put on a worried expression at seeing the unknown teenager to his eyes pressing the end of a gun to the side of Andrew's neck. He whispered, _"Andrew?"_

The younger Watcher nervously laughed, "Hi Giles."

The gentleman kept a weary eye on Freddie and asked his colleague, _"Are you alright?"_

Andrew glanced up to Freddie and tried to idly answer, "That's left to be seen."

Giles looked to Freddie and calmly asked, _"Mister Benson, is there a particular reason why you're holding a gun to my colleague's neck?"_

"So you know who I am?"

"_Yes."_

"Then who are you?"

_"I'm Rupert Giles."_

Andrew quickly offered, "He's our top Watcher—Buffy's Watcher."

Freddie spared Andrew a quick glance then looked back to the laptop monitor. "Okay, so you actually have some pull?"

"_In a manner of speaking. Now would you please tell me why you are holding Andrew hostage?"_

"Yes, so I can have your attention. I want you to tell Buffy Summers something for me: After I'm done with that damn hellgod and destroying that blasted book that I know you know I'm after, she's next. Jade's not going to live the rest of her life watching her back waiting for you to send any more slayers to kill her."

The elder Watcher looked to him in mild shock and was about to reply, but Freddie angrily tapped a button on the keyboard to end the video. He looked to Andrew and hissed, "Go back to England and if I ever see you again, I will kill you."

Andrew felt real fear, the first time in a long time as he watched Freddie slowly take a few steps back, keeping the weapon trained on the Watcher until he reached the door and slipped out of the plane.

Neutronium Records

Chelsea opened the door and peaked around the edge of the door to quickly inform her boss, "Mason, Jade West is here to see you and it's quite urgent."

Mason looked up at the paper work on his desk, slightly frowning at the interruption, but waved her to let them inside. She stepped inside the room and held the door for Jade as she Jade walked into the office, carrying Ian in her arms with her mother barely a step behind her.

Mason got up from his chair and quickly walked around his desk to meet them at seeing the guarded and tensed expressions on their faces. His voice was laced with what sounded like genuine concern, "Jade? Mrs. West?"

The slayer snapped out, "Can you protect me?"

"What happened?"

"The Slayers broke into my home and tried to… they tried to kidnap me and it… it got deadly. Two of them are dead and two more are crippled. I don't think that's going to get Buffy to back off. I had to get their attention now."

He took a deep, unneeded breath, a habit left over from when he possessed his mortal coil. "Yes, hurting them that bad would get their full attention."

"So, can you protect me?"

He crossed his arms over his chest and held his opposite upper arms with his hands. He nodded and replied, "Yes. I have several properties where you, your mom and stepbrother can move—"

She was quick to interrupt, "I don't want to be driven from my home."

"You may not have a choice." The look of sheer defiance on her face told him that it may be a losing argument if he pushed for her and her family to move from their home, but he had to try.

"Jade, they know where you live and they could send more slayers. It's not a defensible position especially since warding isn't all that affective against them. You can stay in a secret and secure location for the time being. Once you've done your performance, they wouldn't dare move against you without exposing themselves. They would have law enforcement after them and they don't want that kind of trouble on their hands. You just have to keep a low profile until Sunday."

Jade looked to Ian's innocent face then towards her mother's concerned, but supportive expression. She looked back to the vampire and reluctantly answered, "Fine. We'll go where you think we'll be safe."

"Good, but Jade, I'll be honest with you: I'm not ready to go to war with the Slayers—not alone anyway."

Jade pulled Ian a little closer to her and looked to his slightly worried expression, not fully understanding the situation but still knowing something was wrong. She looked back to the vampire and answered, "Then I guess you need to get ready and get some allies… what can I do to help you along?"

It took every last bit of self-control for Mason not to crack a smirk.

Villa Royale Penthouse  
Penthouses at Palazzo

Jade may not have wanted to flee from her home, but her mother had the foresight of having them gather as many of their essential belongings and throw them in her and her daughter's car so they wouldn't have to return to their home in the foreseeable future. Due to such a decision, the three were able to move right into one of Mason's properties as soon as they left Neutronium Records with a heavy security detail that would remain to guard the property.

They had picked their rooms (Jade making sure Ian would stay in her room) then were able to take a breath and decompress after the last few hours. Ian was relaxing with Ira in the living room, playing with some of his toys while Mrs. West peacefully watched from the couch with the TV playing in the background.

Jade had opted to walk out onto the balcony of the two level penthouse to relax and try to clear her head. She took a seat in one of the fine cushioned chairs on the balcony and just relaxed back in the seat. Due to Dusty's healing touch, she didn't have any marks or feel any kind of soreness or fatigue from her supernatural fight, but the emotional toll was finally hitting her. She was just in a life and death fight with other slayers and some were going home in body bags. What was worst was that she knew it wasn't over but just beginning.

A soft and comforting voice called out from over her left shoulder, "It's a lovely view. Mason looks like he's trying to outdo himself."

She looked over her shoulder in relief to see Freddie resting against the door frame wearing a weary expression. She got up from her seat and without thinking pulled him into a hug.

She took a deep breath and just inhaled his comforting scent. She didn't stop to think that he was doing the same thing with his nose nearly pressed to the side of her neck. They held one another for a few more seconds before Freddie pulled away, but still holding her in his arms, and asked, "Are you alright?"

She slightly nodded her head and whispered, "Yeah."

He returned with a look that showed he somewhat doubted her statement.

She blew out a breath seeing that he wouldn't let her get by with that answer then retook her seat to look out toward the meticulously kept surrounding property.

He took a seat on the coffee table in front of her. He gave her a sympathetic expression while he waited for her answer.

The pale slayer finally answered with a voice of irritation and real fear, "I'm furious and I want to beat the chizz out of that valley girl airhead but…"

"But what?"

She turned her head and met his eyes, her eyes giving away her fear. "There's something like five hundred of them and now I'm in their crosshairs. How do you win that fight?"

Freddie slight frowned and glanced away from the lovely teenager. It was a thought that had plagued him for hours, especially after he gave his warning to the Watchers. Righteous indignation could only take someone so far, but to take on a small army it wouldn't be enough. However, he realized that he'd fight anyway and find someway to beat them. He could feel an inkling of the answer in the back of his mind.

She glanced down and felt a tightening in her chest of feeling absolutely alone seeing that he thought it was a hopeless situation. She whispered out, avoiding looking at him, "You can bail. You don't have to get anymore involved than you already are. Just find the book then get as far away from me as you can so they don't come after you."

He reached over and gently took one of her hands and laced his fingers. He answered in a hushed tone, "I'm not going anywhere. You're not in this fight alone. I told Buffy's Watcher that once I've destroyed that book that she's next on my list."

She snapped her head up and gave him a completely dumbfounded expression. "You what?"

"I found out where they were going to take you and tracked down Andrew. I had a short video chat with the other Watcher and I told him to deliver that message for me. I'll stop her. You're not going to be looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life fearing that some slayer was going to get you and it may not be such a hopeless fight."

Her troubled feelings were slightly displaced with a moment of confusion. She slightly squinted her eyes and asked in a nearly breathless tone, "What do you mean?"

"Remember what you told Tori Sunday?"

"What?"

"About how Buffy and the Slayers are having everyone start to turn on them? Traditional enemies setting aside their differences in order to get ready to fight Buffy and her slayers? It's more or less insane to be with them when everyone will start to go after them."

Realizing his point was like a light switch going off in her head and she felt a wave of relief go through her. "She can't turn all of them on me without worrying about everything else taking the opportunity to go against her."

He reassuringly smiled to her and commented with an almost smug tone, "We don't have to fight an entire army. We just have to stop them piecemeal—whatever she sends, we stop them until I can get to her."

She slightly shook her head, the feeling of disbelief and mild hopelessness pushing aside the brief feelings of relief that his words had eased off of her heart. "Why? Why would you try to… 'stop' her when every other monster has failed to do it and had been killed for the trouble? Why would you get involved? Why risk your life?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm… I'm your friend and I… I love you as such…" He trailed off sounding like he wanted to say more on that point, but finished instead, "…and I don't want anything to happen to you."

She gently pressed her top teeth into her bottom lip as she tried to accept that answer and their conflicted emotions playing on their respective faces. Each could see that there was something left unsaid by the other, but neither apparently had the courage to continue speaking.

Jade was the first to break the tension feeling staring by leaning forward, wrapping the back of her right arm around the back of his neck. He instinctively slipped his hands onto her waist under the open and loose cardigan just as their lips met. She cupped his cheek with her free hand and thumbed over the corner of his mouth just as each deepened the kiss.

Somewhere in Scotland

In one of the studies in the old Scottish estate that the Slayer Organization had turned into their central headquarters, Giles held the end of the earpiece of his glasses and relaxed back in his seat in deep contemplation of the recent turn of events in regards to just one unremarkable slayer among the nearly two thousand slayers that it had been estimated had been called since Willow's spell nearly ten years ago. Such an assessment would clearly have to be reconsidered by what Andrew and Rona had reported from earlier in the day.

As he attempted to figure out a way to resolve the situation without further bloodshed, Buffy and Xander walked into the study. The most famous vampire slayer wore an understandably irritated expression after apparently hearing both reports Andrew had sent them. Xander wore a more docile expression, hoping to be the levelheaded one of the situation.

Buffy asked with an impatient breath, "Two slayers are dead and two more crippled including somehow _not_ beings slayers anymore from some inexperienced slayer that's making nice with a vampire to work for him? Have I heard the situation correctly from Andrew?"

The elder Watcher blew out a tired breath, something he noticed he had been doing a lot lately over the last few hours after hearing from Andrew—twice, the second time without Freddie pointing a gun to his throat. "Unfortunately yes to an extent. From what Rona and Andrew told us, she's has some powerful friends: a 'Promised One' and a fellow named 'Dusty' somehow has the ability to destroy the part of the demon inside a slayer by touch and was able to… exorcize it out of another one. We can only assume he did the same with the others."

Xander let out an almost giddy laugh, "Wow, that's a nifty power. What do you mean by 'exorcize'? You mean like 'The Exorcist'?"

The blonde spared him a slightly annoyed expression while commenting, "A _dangerous_ power." She looked to Giles and questioned, "What can do something like that? What is he?"

Giles quickly opted to answer Xander before going into what he saw what was going to be the deeper conversation with Buffy, "Yes. Since what powers a slayer is the heart of a demon bestowed by the original Shadow Men, it is foreseeable—" He placed his glasses back on his face, "—and apparently now confirmed that it is possible to exorcize it from a slayer."

The answer didn't sit well with Buffy, but she didn't think on it more as the Watcher continued, "And what exactly is this Dusty? According to the Watcher Erin Sikowitz in L.A. training another slayer, he's a nephil."

Xander squinted his one good eye and questioned, knowing he couldn't have heard correctly, "A nipple?"

Giles pinched the bridge of his nose then calmly and patiently answered, "A nephil, the offspring of a human and an angel."

Buffy cocked her head to the side and dismissed out of hand, "An angel? There are no such things as angels. Hellgods, demons, Old One pure demons, Powers that Be and everything else in between, but there are no angels. The kid's probably just some kind of offshoot demon half-breed we don't know about or warlock with some nifty powers."

Giles hesitated to argue against her point as he was far more incline to support her theory as out of all the denizen of demonic creatures faced in the long history of the Slayers and Watchers, none had ever encountered something close to an angel. Also, if they did exist, why hadn't they stepped in during all the supernatural conflicts?

Buffy quickly continued, "What about the other one? The one that threatened me."

Giles got up from his seat and walked around his desk as he answered, "Yes, Freddie Benson. He's what is referred to as a 'Promised One'. They are quite similar in function of a slayer and almost matching abilities, but in a far more focused capacity. They were foretold to be warriors chosen by God to protect the world from a particular type of demon called a 'deadite'. They inhabit a person, similar to how a demon inhabits a vampire, but the poor victim is still alive. He or she is to perhaps one day finally destroy the book that unleashes them and defeat the ancient god Dagon from ever returning to Earth."

"And because he thinks he's a wannabe slayer, he thinks he can threaten me because his girlfriend wants to do a replay of Faith and we're trying to stop it before it happens?"

Xander spoke up, hoping to calm the clearly irritated young woman, "Buffy, it's obvious what's going on here: Andrew making the same stupid mistake that Wesley did that drove Faith right to the Mayor. Instead of talking and remaining supportive that we just don't want her to fall into the wrong crowd, he tries to kidnap her and now some girls are dead. This Freddie kid is obviously upset and reacting like a teenager would react: react without thinking and trying to act all tough hoping that we'll leave them alone."

Giles took a seat on the edge of his desk and laced his fingers to rest his hands on a knee. "Xander, I may not have wholeheartedly supported Andrew's plan, but he does have a point. Sikowitz and his slayer have done nothing but talk to Jade to get her to see the dangers of continuing the path she's on. Perhaps if we have gotten Faith to talk to her…"

Buffy frowned at the mention of her fellow slayer's name, still after all these years being quite uncomfortable and having her doubts about just how loyal or effective Faith was to the cause.

"…anyway, what done is done. We just have to handle the situation as it stands now."

Xander suggested before the Watcher could continue or Buffy voice her opinion on what should be done, "Let me go to L.A. and maybe try to smooth things over. Give everyone a chance to take a step back from all the macho posturing."

Buffy looked to her long time friend and asked indignantly, "How do we take a step back when two slayers are dead with two more crippled and the rest no longer slayers? That's like asking Caleb to take a step back—they've done more damage in a day than he did to us before I killed him."

The muscles under the eye patch over Xander's left eye twitched at hearing the name, but he kept his composure and responded, "Which wouldn't have happened if Rona hadn't threatened Jade and Andrew hadn't sent more slayers to get her. This Freddie guy is just trying to protect her in his mind thinking we're a threat. You'd do the same thing if someone tried to do that to Dawn—wait, you did do the same thing to the Knights of Byzantium and threatened to kill the rest of us if we had no other choice but to kill Dawn if we couldn't stop Glory before the ritual." He shook his head and softly pleaded, "He's doing the exact same thing you did, so give me a chance."

Buffy frowned, feeling quite annoyed that Xander was throwing up her past to prove his point. After a few seconds of wearing a guarded expression towards her friend, she relented, "Fine, go to L.A. and see if we can't find a way to diffuse this situation before it gets any worst."

The patch wearing man beamed a thankful smile then turned and quickly made his way out of the room to pack and get on his way to Los Angeles.

Once Giles thought he was out of earshot, he reluctantly spoke, "I hate to bring this up, but…"

Buffy turned with crossed arms and tiredly asked, "What?"

"If Xander isn't successful… they already stopped seven slayers and between them and if Tori, Carly and their two demonic friends and vampire join in with that vampire trying to take over Los Angeles stepping in… we may have to commit an entire squad or more to stop them then of course there is that book and trying to stop the release of another hellgod."

"If we have to commit that and more then we have to. We are not letting a hellgod out if we can avoid it and I'm not having a repeat of the Mayor. We already have enough problems with rogue slayers popping up." Her fierce voice lowered and was replaced with a more reluctant tone, "You were right about Genevieve… sometime the dirty work has to be done against a fellow slayer."

The old Watcher nodded his head in accepting Buffy's semi-apology over an incident that happened years ago regarding to how he had dealt with a rogue slayer that was clearly a threat to Buffy.

* * *

Author's Note: Thanks for reading. I hope people enjoyed the appearances by some of the canon characters. Take care and I hope to have the next chapter finished by next weekend.


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